#and they risked their job to tell them all the info about the last two episodes

[thefabulousfab-3]

I love reading all the reactions to recent “spoilers”, that have zero credibility and make absolutely no sense. You guys will believe anything.

[bleue-flora]

Well since everyone’s doing staged duo headcanon I might as well follow @dr3amofagame [post] and @elmhat [post], and throw in my two cents, which is probably less headcanon and more interpretation of canon.

c!Dream and c!Punz’s insistence on answers and power is only half true. Or at least not the full picture. They do want knowledge and answers but not because of power or greed, but because they were hurt by random people like c!Tommy and c!Wilbur showing up with no explanation. The power they strived for wasn’t a ruling, controlling power but the ability to protect what they value, whether from the rest of the server or death.

c!Dream did tell c!Punz about the torture. Debatable on how much detail he goes into but he does tell him, even if prompted first. I think this for a couple reasons. Firstly, to c!Purpled, c!Punz says, “But they were, Dream told me how Sam let him in freely and allowed him to do unspeakable things to him, that wasn’t a prison that was Hell in a box,” basically telling us that c!Dream told c!Punz and while this could be argued as manipulation, it also just makes sense. He also says “And Quackity was allowed to go in and torture him Every. Single. Day. Purpled, do you know what that does to a man, do you know the limits that people have it—it goes beyond those limits, it's not okay,” and his highlight of it being daily is telling to me. It didn’t have to be daily to be brutal and horrible and have lasting effects. Unless he watches Quackity go in and out covered in blood Every Single Day, at which point would cause some serious concern, then how would he know it was daily unless c!Dream told him? And I am of the opinion that if he had noticed Quackity coming in and out of the prison covered in blood, suspecting c!Dream was being tortured then he would have said something to c!Dream or in his own inner thoughts during the Jailbreak stream. Secondly, as someone with the Revive book it’d be kinda reckless to not inform c!Punz about what happened. He kinda should know who is a major threat and what lengths people are willing to go. After all, should they find out he has the book somehow he needs to be informed on what that could mean for him. But even so, I don’t think c!Dream just offered up that information without c!Punz either asking or doing/saying something that persuades c!Dream to tell him. c!Punz definitely suspects first before he learns more details.

c!Punz did not know why c!Dream wanted Quackity’s location or what he intended to do with the information in the scrapped lore. So, he didn’t take time to scope it out, it was more of - here’s where he lives sorta deal (like if c!Dream asked where Kinoko Kingdom is, then it’s not like c!Punz is going to scope out the place for booby traps and such, he’d just give the location). So, he doesn’t learn about the torture till after, when c!Dream is way worse for wear and tells him what happened in Pandora’s Vault, but I do agree, not about what exactly happened in the scrapped lore (it would make him look too weak).

I think I do have to agree with dr3 and elm on c!Punz going behind c!Dream’s back when going to Purpled. I don’t think c!Dream would risk c!Punz’s exposure like that after everything he sacrificed to keep them a secret and yea c!Dream definitely doesn’t have the info on c!Purpled and c!Slime to put together that plan. I could definitely see it as c!Punz’s own like redemption for the failed first attempt at revenge that he is inadvertently at fault for. Like after finding out about the torture and why c!Dream wanted to know where Quackity was, he is upset and goes to form a plan for better revenge, which after a certain point of success he ropes c!Dream in.

c!Punz does visit the prison, but not before Dream breaks out and not like all the time but just because c!Tommy or c!Sapnap may be watching the place doesn’t mean c!Punz can’t sneak it. He’s a spy after all, it’s kinda his job. I get this impression based on how c!Punz and c!Dream seem to show off the prison together in the finale - ‘let’s show them a part they haven’t been to before.’ And while the deterioration of the prison is a great parallel to Tommy’s overgrown home, both representing the poor mental states of the characters, I think it is worth noting that it’d be really suspicious if the prison was all nice. Like yea ideally no one gets in, but if they do it’s a good deterrent for the place to look dirty and abandoned. After all, who would live in such a mess? Is similar to the mindset or who chooses to live in their own torture box? Who chooses to live in their own hell?... 

c!Punz is jealous of c!George.

[aj-lenoire]

i know it’s 2023 but i have a lot of Thoughts™ on demon!dean and since this is my corner of the internet and i can talk about whatever i goddamn like we’re gonna talk about how they squandered the deanmon potential—yes i know this was back in 2015 what’s your point misha had to come out as straight last year this train is never stopping

cause like, i remember all the promo spots being off the shits like ‘THIS…IS THE YEAR…OF THE DEANMON!!!!’

and i was psyched, and then it turned out to be like, 3 episodes. and he just sang terrible karaoke. the worst thing he did was try to grope a woman—which, obviously, is a shitty thing to do, but isn’t on the same level as like, torturing her to death

it just—it could’ve been so damn cool. imagine, like, castiel trying to reason with him, and since angels see demons as they truly are, not who they’re wearing (also: was deanmon possessing his own corpse? could he have possessed another human? i haven’t rewatched since it aired but like… did they ever clarify that??) he can see like this mutilated thing that he knows is his friend, but it’s almost beyond recognition

and deanmon is basically a soulless human, functionally, because he doesn’t care about anything or anyone except himself and what he wants, and these two guys with their ‘i know you’re in there somewhere’ and ‘this isn’t the real you’ crap are really getting on his nerves, so he’s coming out with stuff like how, it was forty years in hell, therefore alistair knew him longer than sam or cas, alistair made him into what he is now, and he’s so grateful bc he’s no longer snivelling over every insignificant dead human they come across. humans are so pathetically fragile after all, why bother trying to save them?

just IMAGINE the potential—the futility of cas raising him from perdition! because this was always who he was meant to become, what he was going to be, and cas was just delaying the inevitable—because dean’s whole life has been authority figures forging him into their weapon. all cas was trying to do was swap out one blacksmith for another

and yeah i know they needed to wrap up the deanmon thing sharpish because of the 300th episode but like… they could’ve made 300 a flashback. like a fun-ish job the boys did years prior, and at the end of the episode sam suddenly wakes up because he was dreaming of that hunt and in remembering it he’s had a ~breakthrough~ on how to help dean—and THAT’S how he knows where to look and finds out about the blood injection nonsense

(i still cannot believe it was THAT SIMPLE to cure someone of being a demon. and that dean was also allegedly a knight of hell or some bullshit)

like we could’ve had a solid half-a-season of deanmon, we get to see the full range of what he was actually capable of. he still blows off crowley, obviously, because he doesn’t need to be babysat, he doesn’t need someone to line up a murder-y demon deal for him like he’s on an enrichment program at the zoo

sam hasn’t seen him in several episodes, he’s still trying to figure out how to get dean back, if he can get dean back, and he’s doing hunts in between because he feels morally obligated to, or he needs money, or he’s doing it for someone in return for info on the dean thing—whatever

dean rocks up to where sam’s working on a job, and at first you just think he’s there to piss sam off and generally fuck around, and sam just can’t look at him and can’t be near him cause it’s so obviously not his brother and he doesn’t want to risk dean realising he’s searching for a fix, because he genuinely, deeply fears that this thing with his brother’s face will try to kill him.

but dean’s going around telling everyone that sam’s his brother and forcing sam to play nice because they’re in front of people, and dean makes very clear what will happen if sam doesn’t play nice and doesn’t let dean do as he likes—and sam’s just disgusted and uneasy

and once sam finishes the job—having bonded slightly with whoever was being attacked—he tells dean to leave him the hell alone, and leaves the town. and dean stays behind, seemingly honouring his brother’s wishes—is there hope?

but that night‚ dean goes to the house of whoever sam helped on the hunt. maybe it’s a cute suburban family‚ maybe it’s a college girl whose friend was killed, but he knocks on the door and says he’s dean and he’s sam’s brother and they’re estranged and he doesn’t know where sam went—could she help him? so she invites him in‚ because sam is the kind guy who just saved her life, and his brother is just as charming and handsome and seems like a nice dude, and the last thing we see is dean (from behind) as he enters‚ and he’s holding the first blade behind his back and the door just slowly swings shut. cut to black.

and later—maybe not next episode‚ maybe the viewers are left to stew for a bit—dean calls sam and tells him what he did. that the people sam risked his life to save are dead. sam ended up not making a difference at all. and the most fucked up part is that he sounds exactly like regular dean as he says all this—using the same slang and chirpy tone like he’s talking about music. and in that same cheerful tone, he warns sam not to try ordering him around ever again.

dean enjoyed being a hunter, he enjoyed the heroism and simplicity of killing bad guys and saving good guys. now, with the first blade making him crave blood? without that pesky conscience? he doesn’t much care about good or bad anymore. he cares that this guy still sees him as his poor, tragic brother, and is still trying to save him, so killing the people that this guy just saved? it’s fun. it’s funny. this guy is annoying him with this ‘i know you’re in there’ talk but this is him, and he likes it, and he likes watching sam fret over fragile, insignificant humans because sam is just as pathetic

[captaingondolin]

Get to know me tag game!

tagged by @corelliaxdreaming

I am constitutionally incapable of being brief ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

1. Do you make your bed?

Usually not. Sometimes I think it will magically make me feel better about life. Or help me not fall back into it (spoiler: it doesn't work)

2. Favorite number?

Even numbers. 5 and its multiples are on thin ice.

3. What’s your job?

Used to be librarian, currently an archeology student (shout out to my mother for the help, to my depression funk that meant I spent next to nothing during my last two years at work, and to the fact that I moved to a place where normal humans don't need faustian deals to afford higher education)

4. If you could go back to school would you?

See above. I am also an anxious mess who cannot do deadlines, so the dream would be just attending lectures forever without doing exams/essays (which I think in my home country you could technically legally do, since unis are public, you only pay if you enroll. but it might be outdated info)

5. Can you parallel park?

No license yet (and I'm An Old). Don't judge, I used to live in London, and currently I'm in a weird spot with figuring out where I'm living long term.

6. Do you think aliens are real?

Same as what Katie said, not sure about humanoid aliens, but the universe is vast and there must be life somewhere else.

7. Can you drive a manual car?

See above. But I live in Europe, most people use manual, so that's what I'll learn.

8. What’s your guilty pleasure?

Guilt was invented by the catholic church to sell more confessions.

9. Tattoos?

I have a whole list. I promised the very first to my child self (it will be Alexander the Great themed). But.

There's an ongoing thing with my mother - I know she has no say over my body and it's not my responsibility if she chooses to take my decisions as a personal attack. However, she's one of the best people I know about literally everything else (not just because we are related, mind you, I can and have told family to fuck right out of my life), so for a long time I hemmed and hawed about it, because I wasn't sure it was worth risking a fight. Recently I got a nose ring and she has kept her mouth blessedly shut about it, so yay for progress (again, I am An Old, but mediterranean mothers are just Like That. In her defence, she outright told me she is making an effort to treat me as an adult and a peer and I can see her really working on it).

10. Favorite color?

the colour of the sky

Orange. I'd pull off the pilot flightsuit. And pink, I adore all shades of pink!

11. Favorite type of music?

Currently in a months long standoff with my brain, who thinks music is evil and out to get him (because we're not having feelings right now) but I can occasionally spoon feed him Hazbin Hotel. ♫⋆ CAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE POISON, YOU'RE FEEDING ME POOOISOOOON, ADDICTED TO THIS FEEEEELIIIIIN' ♪ ₊˚♬

...sorry.

If things are good, literally everything, but I love musicals (Legally Blonde got me through uni last time), metal (D'Artagnan is the latest band I discovered) and everything in the folk, folk metal, country, sea shanties, pirate metal kind of rhythm, and classical music (Verdi can so get it. and Mozart, baby Gondolin's first crush). Oh, and tango and early 2000 pop. Hardstyle if I'm in a writing fugue. I used to only dislike slow ballads and acoustic remakes, but I was recently personally attacked by Avril Lavigne with the Bite Me acoustic. And tbh I listen to Hozier, I should have known.

Shoutout to Inti-Illimani, I am contractually obligated to tell people about chilean protest songs-andean folk legends, listen to them.

12. Do you like puzzles?

Nope.

13. Any phobia?

Mice. Most houses I lived in while in London had mice, and seeing glimpses of tail and little feet scuttling about in places like the fucking kitchen counter really did me in. I recently saw the tiniest, objectively cute, mouse outside (at an archaeological dig, we'd disturbed him and not the other way around) and my heartbeat still got fucked. Meanwhile, I was chill with the HUGE centipede, the snake that slithered right past me, the geko, the turtles, spiders and all other wildlife, or even huge city cockroaches.

Maybe my phobia is shitty British houses, actually. Your walls and celings are not supposed to have holes, you know?

14. Favorite childhood sport?

Quitting. I wasn't into sports enough for me to want to go on and I couldn't give a rat's ass about competing. But I loved ice skating and judo. Skiing too (I grew up in the mountains, I know for a lot of people skiing is the epitome of luxury xD but I could have probably walked to a slope. Okay, maybe not walked, but.)

15. Do you talk to your self?

All the time, and my grandma used to be the same.

I used to give myself interviews when I was a kid, imagining myself as a famous author or filmmaker. Now sometimes I pretend I'm talking to my therapist. Or just straight up talk through things out loud, so it's easier to follow a single train of thought without thinking a billion things at once. Or I give myself little pep talks or go "godddamit, self" and I talk to objects a lot.

16. What movies do you adore?

The Lord of the Rings. All the Star Warses. Even the ones I don't love are fun. Rogue One is top tier but I need to be hydrated for how much I'll cry.

More recently the duology Les Trois Mousquetaires : D'Artagnan part I and II. I can't quite figure out if it's for the movies themselves (and the soundtrack, the soundtrack absolutely slaps), because I'm horrendously thirsty for the cast (I would let trauma-ridden, unwashed, long-haired Vincent Cassel straight up give me syphilis. He's so fucking good as the alcoholic trashfire that is Athos) or if it's because I adore the book and Dumas is part of my genetic makeup at this point.

17. Coffee or tea?

Coffee (currently drinking the cold brew of dreams). I don't like black tea, but herbal teas/infusions are fantastic. I have a hibiscus, apple, mint and berries one from Lidl that is the stuff of dreams (excellent cold too, I brew it for longer with a pinch of green tea and honey, then add some lemon and it's the shit). On the more bougie side, I have the biggest hard on for jasmine tea. Most places sell you green tea with a vague hint of jasmine, but the good stuff that comes in little balls is unparalleled, it smells like the flowers. Also good both hot or cold (again, brewed for longer with some honey or sugar and then I love it with milk or milk substitutes).

18. First thing you wanted to be growing up

Archaeologist 💖 librarian, writer, film director, and briefly F1 pilot.

Since I never know who to tag, I'm doing the last 5 mutuals who liked/reblogged something, because why not. Feel free to ignore this! @obiwong @reena-jenkins @silvergryphon @tothestarwarsandback @themonopolyhat

[harmonyckrs]

Day 6 in Twisted Pleasantview: Some Extra Secrets They've Been Hiding

THE PREVIOUS DAY

NAME: VIDCUND CURIOUS

LIFE STATGE: Adult

STATUS: ALIVE, FUNCTIONAL ?????

SPECIAL NOTES: Found Dina's twins in the forest that held her body, and has taken it upon himself to raise them. With the two children already in his house, there's a lot on his and his brother's plates.

---

Dear Diary,

Today I dropped by the house of the town harlot, which I found by spying on him when he was yelling at the Specters last night and following him back home. He kept turning around a lot as if he could hear me, but I don't think he spotted me so it's all good. Dirk insisted on coming with me, just in case he tried to do anything.

I was greeted by this blonde guy, and as much as I tried to make light conversation with him in hopes of convincing him to let me talk to the town harlot he declined. Due to this I decided to just linger near the graves of their parents for a couple of hours before the guy himself pulled up from work.

It took very little convincing to convince the town harlot to agree to the interview, but he still seemed wary. When I confronted him about it, he apologized and said that he didn't want to risk getting slandered again. I reassured him that I would not, and then he finally let me ask him questions.

Also, I learned his name! It's Pascal. I can finally call him something other than the town harlot!

I decided to start the interview by asking him some questions about his past in order to ease him into giving me info on the allegations. He used to be a scientist back in Strangetown before it got overtaken by Dr. Vu, and his youngest brother, Lazlo, supposedly died in a fire but the body was never found. Pascal said that he thinks Lazlo might still be alive, but that he and his other brother (the blonde guy) had no luck in finding him. Pascal also mentioned some stuff about his job as a nurse, but mentioned that he plans to quit because of Don harassing him.

This gave me the perfect opportunity to ask him about the "town harlot" allegations, and let's just say that choosing him was a great idea! Don apparently hit on HIM after Orpheus ghosted him, and then spread a rumor that Pascal tried to seduce him when he said no. And this was while Don was engaged to Cassandra, too! And then when I asked him about him supposedly trying to seduce Dad, he said he had no idea who Dad even was!

SECRETS UNLOCKED:

Orpheus ghosted his fiance of five years, Pascal, while he was seven months pregnant with their kid, because his mother, Olive Specter, did not approve of him.

Don claimed that Pascal hit on him after Pascal rejected his advances at work.

Daniel lied about Pascal hitting on him as well after Don made his initial claim, even though the two of them never met.

Mortimer got Pascal and Vidcund blacklisted from the science industry, while Mary Sue has been spreading the rumors that Don and Daniel helped build.

Once I got all the juicy details, Pascal told me that his brother was now working as a journalist and that in exchange for his interview, that I would have to let him interview me. When I asked why, he said it was because I was a Pleasant. Unsure what that's for but maybe he wants info on the life of the daughter of a failed politician or soccer coach who peaked in high school. Beats me. He said we could do it over the phone so that it would be easier to record, so I just thanked him and went home

Once I got home, Mom confronted me about going to the house of the "town harlot," so I confronted her about Cassandra. Apparently Dad overheard and he got super mad, and now they hate each other. Oopsy daisies. Angela's going to be so mad once she gets back from her date with Dustin, and Dirk seemed genuinely shocked about what he heard. I imagine he's going to tell Mr. Dreamer later and I look forward to seeing what shitshow comes out of that

Really need to figure out who tf snitched on me, though. Angela's out with Dustin and Dirk went home right after. Guessing it could've been the Specters or Alexander, considering he was playing in the yard with Mortimer when I passed by them. Either way, I've got to be more careful.

THE NEXT DAY

[requiesticat]

5 Questions 15 Mutuals

Tagged by @hopelesscrawl. I don't get to do these often, so thanks for the ping!

1. Are you named after anyone?

Not to my knowledge. Online I go by Seyu

Adrian is my name irl. After watching Castlevania, I found out that Alucard's real name is Adrian Tepes- he's one of my favorite characters from that series, so it was a neat coincidence!

Seyu is a bastardization of Yasu/Sayo Yasuda's name. You can tell I've played too much Umineko, lol. Eventually it became a full "title", Seyune Koizumi-Hearn. That comes from the irish writer Lafcadio Hearn, who adopted a japanese surname upon becoming a citizen there (Koizumi Yakumo). I'm irish american myself, and it more or less felt right.

2. When was the last time you cried?

At my last job. Retail is miserable, and I'm glad to be out of that environment.

3. Do you have kids?

No- due to suffering from mental illness I'd prefer to not risk passing that on.

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

Sometimes, but not very often. Usually I just keep to myself instead of expressing it outright.

5. What sports do you play/have played?

Badminton. I'm rubbish at all other sports- badminton is the only one I'm decent at.

6. What's the first thing you notice about people?

Usually, how they come off while talking. Their appearances next.

7. What's your eye color?

Blue-grey

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

Both. Horror doesn't bother me much, tbh. If you've read my webcomic or the stories I write, there are mainly elements of psychological horror.

9. Any special talents?

Drawing and writing. Singing as well- I've considered posting song covers

10. Where were you born?

Maryland. I'd like to move back there someday. Right now, I live in rural Pennsylvania... it's the same state but with bad weather

11. What are your hobbies?

Art, music, and writing. I've produced music before:

(My webcomic was called Solitaire before I changed the name to Stockholm Cat Syndrome. Here's a playlist featuring every instrumental created for the project.

Some of the instrumentals are unsettling, indicated by changed artwork with a red background. Keep that in mind before listening. If it gets to be too much, the pink art is "safe")

12. Do you have any pet?

Several pets. Two cats, a betta, two platys, a snail, and a jumping spider. More info about them here. This may count as another hobby.

13. How tall are you?

5'8". Officially taller than Vegeta

14. Favorite subject in school?

English and science. Math was my worst subject; I could never pass those classes no matter how hard I tried to study mathematics.

15. Dream job?

Graphic designer or author with illustrated books. Maybe a toy designer. Just any position where I can work in a quiet space with no interruptions, and make a decent salary for it.

Something remote would be nice as well. Either way I'd rather not try sales/customer service again.

Tag list (only if you feel like it):

@anpanham @askutopis @rabbithub @taniskut @choppers-pink-hat @zootycutie

If there are users I didn't tag who would be interested in doing this, feel free. I don't have a lot of mutuals who use tumblr atm

[casliveblog]

Custom Toonami Block Week 143 Rundown

Spy X Family: So despite being Bluey-level involved parents, apparently the neighbors are now suspicious of Loid because he’s out working late every night on Spy shit which it’s kinda funny because the show never shows us Loid or Yor doing their jobs all that much and somehow neither really gets in the way of their family façade but apparently Loid’s been out doing Spy shit this whole time and it’s one of those Fairly Oddparents retcons of ‘oh yeah it’s always been this way because that’s how it has to be for the plot/joke to work’. So yeah, despite being a walking zombie Loid plans an Aquarium trip for some fatherly-enforced family fun, honestly planning a trip and putting a lot of pressure on the family to ‘have fun or else’ is probably the most normal dad thing Loid’s done so far. I mean not that Loid can’t be a cheating husband with a double life AND take his family to the aquarium but people seem stupid so it’s probably fine. Loid gets another mission while at the aquarium and he has to… get info out of a penguin, that seems like the dumbest way to exchange info like can’t you just stick it in one of the statues or tanks or something holy shit why stick it inside an animal? Apparently Anya can read penguin minds too so that’s fucking dope but because they’re penguins it’s not much to read. Still Loid’s able to break in and get to the penguin she finds that looks suspicious and is it just me or does the Forger family seem kinda like Team Rocket in that they feel like they have an excellent set of skills to do several other jobs than the one they’re doing, like Loid could definitely retire and become a penguin wrangler. Anyway after some hiccups, Loid gets the penguin and Anya reverse-kidnaps herself to have Yor beat the shit out of the enemy spy so mission accomplished. There’s also a little skit of Anya giving her review of the house before being stopped before going in Loid or Yor’s rooms which is pretty cute, nice way to end off the first half of the season.

Inuyasha: With last week’s revelation that the literal last jewel shard is at Inuyasha’s dad’s grave we spend a good portion of the episode going ‘wait how did that work again?’ given it was like, episode five we’re over a hundred episodes in at this point and unlike Naruto, Inuyasha doesn’t flash back to the same few key scenes every couple episodes despite being as absurdly long and filler-ridden. Inuyasha goes to find Myoga and Totosai to get him to yank the death portal out of his eye but they’re like ‘sorry bro, one way trip, gotta take it up with the guy who made it’ and it’s really funny because they really abuse the pearl in Yashahime and kinda plaster over it by throwing New Hosenki from this episode in there to be like ‘yeah I fixed it and made it better’ despite him saying in this episode it’d take him a hundred years to do it but I also vaguely recall Riku having some shenanigans on that front. Anyway Hakudoshi’s basically stringing Inuyasha along this whole episode and making it clear he has no fucking clue how to get into the afterlife and is teasing Inuyasha so he can do it first and Hakudoshi can pull an Ocarina of Time and be like ‘well since you opened the door for me’ and it’s really silly because Hakudoshi appears to Inuyasha and ONLY Inuyasha just to ‘neener neener neener, I’ll get to the grave first’ and then like two hours later sends Kagura to deliver a message about how to actually get there so Inuyasha does all the life-risking grunt work but like BITCH YOU JUST TALKED TO HIM AN HOUR AGO AND SAID NOTHING OF VALUE, YOU COULDN’T HAVE TOLD HIM THEN!? Like they don’t even play it smart and make it look like Kagura’s rebelling again and telling them something they shouldn’t know, she straight up says Hakudoshi told her to tell them this, so Hakudoshi’s just being an extra little albino bitch but he’s like eight days old at this point so I guess I have to cut him some slack.

Yu Yu Hakusho: Well Yusuke is definitely 100% dead forever and Hiei, Kurama and Kuwabara immediately power up to follow Sensui through the tunnel. Hiei blasts a Dragon of the Darkness Flame and it really just pushes Sensui into demon world but it does fucking obliterate every minor demon that was on its way so the tunnel is clear for the moment, also Kurama is apparently able to turn into Yoko as like a Super Saiyan form while keeping his own personality now so it just goes to show those two have not been taking a single fight in this arc seriously up until now. Meanwhile we catch up with the Koenmas, our usual Koenma basically spelling out Sensui’s plan to enrage everyone to chase him into demon world and have Kuwabara slice through the mosquito net barrier stopping the eldritch demons from coming out meanwhile King Yamma is mobilizing the Law & Order Special Demons Unit to go take care of some shit but he’s vague about what he means exactly. Meanwhile in the limbo world that proves Bleach really did steal everything from YYH, Kuwabara jokes about the grid pattern basically being a video game and Hiei who was just literally in a video game where they had to murder a child to get out tells him to shut the fuck up. They get to the big barrier and Sensui’s not a demon so he can run right through but because Hiei and Kurama are now Super Saiyan demons they got blocked, now Kuwbara either has to fight Sensui alone or slice up the barrier to let them through. Now there’s a couple things I like about this exchange: 1. They absolutely don’t have to continue the fight, they can actually just fucking walk away right now and Sensui’s kinda screwed like he can’t chase them or cut the barrier on his own, but nobody’s willing to just let Sensui go after he killed Yusuke. 2. When Kuwabara does cut through the barrier, unlike usual when he does something stupid, no one tells him to stop and I like to think that Hiei and especially Kurama are smart enough to know Sensui’s playing them but they’re not willing to back down at this point, even if it means making things on Earth a whole lot worse. 3. Kuwabara does have the option of being headstrong and self-sacrificing as usual and throw himself at Sensui and die senselessly while claiming he doesn’t need anybody’s help but he admits he can’t beat Sensui on his own and needs help from his friends and does the (relatively) more level-headed thing. So yeah, Sensui gets through to Demon World and checks ‘see the world of the creatures you thoughtlessly murdered’ off his bucket list and goes into his super ultimate armor form which is basically just ‘no’ the ability, you can’t be stronger than it, can’t break through it, just no. Like Hiei swallows the dragon and does his DBZ shit, Kurama does some kinda hell plant thing, notably Sensui does still have to dodge Kuwabara’s dimension sword so if they were able to pin him down and force that to hit him that might have worked but yeah everyone’s just kinda fucked at this point.

Jujutsu Kaisen: We get brief flashbacks of the adults making vague attempts to stop Yuji from charging in and of Junpei getting his Jellyfish Shikikami powers and then the fight is on. Yuji’s double punch shit does about as much to the jellyfish as Flats punching Spongebob but he’s able to maneuver around enough to be able to hit Junpei directly and for some reason the jellyfish’s poison doesn’t seem to affect him at all. After a round of beating the shit out of each other, Yuji gets Junpei calm enough to just fucking tell him what happened with his mom and shit and how Junpei’s basically like ‘people don’t have feelings because the alternative is the people who killed my mom are sociopaths and that’s harder to reconcile’ and Yuji gets the idea to recruit Junpei to be the late stage starter pack but before we can change the opening song too much Mahito jumps in and turns Junpei into a soul gremlin like a few seconds after he has the revelation that MAYBE the dude doing soul experiments in the sewer might be a bad guy. Yuji asks Sukuna to heal Junpei and Sukuna either can’t or won’t, he plays it off as a ‘oh watching you beg is a lot more fun than helping even for power’ but it’s most likely either he can’t heal other people or making a second pact would override the one he already made with Yuji which kinda flies in the face of Mahito’s plan and the plan further falls apart when Junpei apparently dies and Yuji gets SO fucking pissed that he PUNCHES MAHITO’S SOUL like I don’t quite understand the lingo of this show yet but getting so pissed you punch out someone’s soul is badass no matter how you slice it, it has something to do with the Yami Yugi thing Yuji and Sukuna have going but apparently Yuji can punch you so hard it literally hits your very soul and that’s freaking cool as hell. They fight for a while and it’s pretty neat because Yuji’s pissed/dumb enough to just facetank all of Mahito’s chimera shit and Mahito’s basically human silly putty so any damage doesn’t last too long. He tries to turn Yuji into a soul gremlin so he’ll have to ask Sukuna to reverse it but Sukuna stops him like ‘What the fuck you think you’re doing bro, get your dirty ass hands off my soul you franekstein motherfucker before I ram your soul so far up your ass…’ and before Mahito can properly counterattack Kento shows up and realizes Yuji has soul-punching powers so they’re gonna team up to fight this guy and that’ll be fun.

Chainsaw Man: It’s the finale and this one kinda caught me by surprise, like I thought I had two episodes left but apparently I lost count and this is it. After last week and the Ghost Devil nearly killing Aki, this time it’s decided it wants to play nice and gives him the cigarette Himeno told him he could have when he grew up and because he has no fear of the ghost devil anymore it legit can’t see him (though he also walks on it and presumably it can feel him so maybe it just wanted to die instead of being controlled by snake girl idk) He beheads it and before Snake Girl can get her snake on, Kobeni pops out of nowhere using her Sloppy Blowjob Devil powers and captures her. Denji and Power come up against a room full of zombies and Power charges right in and Denji’s just like ‘nope’ and steps back into the elevator which is probably good because the next floor has Katana Man on it. Katana Fucker is still pissed about Denji killing his grandpa which is like one of the few things Denji was NOT in the wrong about like not only did he not kill him till he was already a zombie but the dude blackmailed him all his life into indentured servitude, we’ve established that Denji’s a heartless asshole and Katana Man not wanting to even kill zombies confirms that’s not part of the Devil Man process but something innate to Denji’s character, but he was well within his rights to fucking murder that guy long before he did. Anyway the two fight and do their Spider-Man 2 train sequence and it’s cool and shit but Denji gets both his arms cut off when Katana Man starts doing his anime katana move because he has the power of god and anime on his side. They do the super awesome run past each other and slash deal where Denji says he’s gonna cut him down with his head blade but since Denji’s a lying sack of shit he pulls out his secret move, LEG CHAINSAWS and completely subverts the whole clash which is fun. Katana Boi wakes up chained to the train and I’m not entirely sure why he can’t just transform again but I guess he ran out of blood like Denji does and Denji and Aki take turns kicking him in the balls for killing Himeno which is insanely satisfying like there’s this weird kind of fusion between the ‘we won’t kill you, justice will be served’ and the sure juvenile joy of the nutshots that makes it very fun like it’s not even severe enough torture to be an ethical dilemma it’s just like ‘eh, it’ll make us feel a bit better’ and it is a nice bonding moment between Aki and Denji, even almost makes me forget that Katana Dude didn’t actually kill Himeno at all and they should be mad at Snake girl since she was the one that ate the Ghost Devil and invalidated the sacrifice in the first place (also did we ever get a reason for why Katana Man wouldn’t stay dead even under Aki’s ‘definitely kill you’ sword or was that just chalked up to ‘Devil Men basically can’t die, do not pass go do not collect $200’?). But yeah, everyone’s good, Makima says that the Gun Devil jewel shards they got from the bust gave them enough to track the Gun Devil, Snake Girl dies horrifically in front of Kobeni for maximum trauma and we get a cool montage of Denji, Power and Aki just enjoying running errands to close off the season. Also Denji has the dream he had from the beginning of the season about talking to Pochita from through a doorway which I’m guessing is his Naruto/Kurama seal place and if he opens it Pochita will take back over and drive Denji out.

So yeah, that’s the end of Season 1 for Chainsaw Man and I had a lot of fun and I want more but that’s it for now, dunno if I’ll figure out a new anime to watch for next week or just cut the block a little shorter, I’ll see how I feel when it gets closer.

Ranking of Kings: So we get a new opening and this opening song is actually how I first heard of this series and it does fucking slap so that’s cool. Bojji and Kage are still on their way to the castle and apparently Despa is on his way too but is a ways behind because, and I shit you not, his horse got too fat. Meanwhile Hilling is assaulting the gate and Sword Guy has trained Kirito Guard to become Crossbow Guy and help him infiltrate the castle to destroy the gate to the Underworld. Meanwhile Miranjo’s busted the Underworld Criminals out of prison and is just like ‘yeah go nuts I don’t give a fuck’ and they just like immediately kill her puppets but luckily she has Koro-sensei’s absolute defense mode so no one can smash her mirror. The majority of the episode is getting a feel for these criminal dudes and there are some that are just generic tough guys, one that seems to be more of a schemer and one that’s a fucking Dark Souls dude who cuts into Big Strong Guy #3 Kingbo’s tendons so he can’t hold his sword or stand and just acupunctures his back a bunch and lets him bleed out. This guy is Ouken and my working theory is that he has the same kind of training Bojji does where his fighting style targets vital points for disabling rather than crushing with strength only he went the dark murdery ‘disable and let your enemies bleed out’ route on his skill tree. They just kinda yeet Kingbo out of the castle and schemer guy takes over, Snake Guy tells the snakes to bury Kingbo but turns out he’s still alive which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone because I don’t think anyone who’s died during this series has actually stayed dead.

Vinland Saga: Askeladd runs his men fucking ragged to try and outrun Thorkell’s advancing army that outnumbers him five to one, sending for reinforcements while heading up the river with them hot on their trails. Bjorn confronts Askeladd about his uneasiness and Askeladd admits Canute’s kind of a downer considering if they win he’s supposed to be the King of England. However they’re able to get away from Thorkell using the English’s one eternal weakness: forgetting other countries exist. They escape to Wales, the red-headed stepchild of the United Kingdom where Askeladd has some contacts that are willing to escort Canute on the chance that when he becomes King of England he’ll stay the fuck out of their country. Like Canute seems like he’d keep his word but would it really be England if they minded their own business? Negotiations do not go well because Canute is, in clinical terms, a fucking pussy. Still they set off with Thorfinn acting as Canute’s personal bodyguard as they work to reunite with the rest of the army in the nearest fort. On the way Askeladd admits that despite claiming to be a great judge of character, having faith in people like Thors hasn’t really worked out for him so maybe someone he has absolutely no faith in like Canute is the change of pace the world needs. Before they can get too deep into navelgazing they’re immediately ambushed in the next town, some deity out there heard Askeladd reminiscing about Thors and fucking trapped him in the same archer high ground bullshit he used on him.

[imagine-silk]

Things sitting in my WIPs

You know when you start something and you have like a few things for it but not all of it. I have a reasonable amount. So look at them and maybe do my job for me or send a little thing for it. I'm spread thin. (Also, yes, I am getting to the asks. Just losing writing juice.) Marvel first. Also header here.

Steve Rogers finding some blood family

Summary: Steve wants a family, that much is clear from the movies, so the idea is he finds someone in Brooklyn that is related to him.

He couldn’t get himself to knock so he stood at the door uncomfortable close. Steve has nothing from his past life, his apartment was rented out to someone, everyone he knew was dead, the air smelled different, so did the growing winter chill. But he was never one to give in so easily. He was bound to have some sort of family. And he did. He was at their doorstep. 

His mom's sister's grandson. Steve got one of the SHIELD people to get the info for him, he loved Natasha but she would have given him everything this man had ever done before and he didn't want that info. Now he was thinking maybe he should have.

Knock knock

It took fourteen heartbeats for the door to open and show a young man in a tank top scratching his head and squinting, skin tanned with freckles from the sun and two moles on his neck that made vampire bites. His squint didn't let up however. "What'cha selling. I don't want it."

"I'm not here to sell anything. I'm looking for [F.Name]."

[F.Name] stopped scratching. "I beg your pardon."

"[F.Name] [L.Name]."

"I can't see, who am I talking to?" He seemed to be one hundred percent serious about the sight thing, his eyes didn't focus on him.

"This is going to sound crazy but I'm your cousin."

"I can see color," He frowned, knitting his eyebrows in the same way his aunt would, genuinely confused but very willing to hear someone out.

"My name is Steve Rogers. My mom was your grandma's sister."

This was the part he expected to fight for, to show proof or explain further. He didn’t need to though. "Oh. Yeah. That. Come in then." [Name] stepped back and held the door from the side. So he took the invite with confusion, sat on the couch while [Name] took the other. "First things first. My mom is dead, but I guess you knew that. She said she didn't want you to see her if she couldn't recognize you. I'm guessing you've been through that too though."

Steve rubbed his hands and thought of his cousin, wondering if he could handle seeing her like that while Peggy was doing the same. "Yeah I have."

"Sorry, man. Can't imagine waking up from a nap to all of this mess. Then having to do what you do. I do not envy you."

"You knew we were related? And you never said anything."

"Why would I?"

"I've had people tell that to me before. Not all of them were kids." He was a big figure and had diplomatic immunity to a certain extent, after he saved the world last time he had it again. In short, a good person to have in your pocket.

"To be honest, I didn't think you'd want to see me."

"Why?"

"I'm 'colored'. You're from the 1930s." It made sense and he never thought about it before. To think that was what got in the way of seeing him was depressing. "I figured you wouldn't but I didn't want to risk it."

Peter B is a fucking HIMBO

Summary: Peter is very smart and not dumb at all. That being said, I just want a himbo so here we are.

It was so fucking hot. Summer was not your favorite time of year and it never will be. The beach was always crowded and so was every building, the good stuff at stores was always sold out unless you got to it early, and vendors had lines that led to the train. And here you were sitting on a bench in the park that had no shade waiting. There was shade a bit away but you told Peter you would be there and you didn’t want to risk it, even if the time was flying and baking you. 

You looked around again not actually expecting to see the man you were waiting for, even less so that he would be running. Sweating to the point his work shirt was starting to show what was underneath and disappoint you it was another shirt. He did a hard stop in front of you and struggled to catch his breath, face flushed, chest heaving. “Hey, I’m sorry I’m,” 

You swept your lust under the rug and let your panic take front. “Peter, why were you running? I thought you were taking the bus.”

“I ran to see you dingus.” He laughed and looked at you with a squinty smile that moved what was under the rug. “You won’t believe everything that’s happened but let’s go over there first.”

He all but collapsed under the tree shade and propped his arm on his knee while his thigh pushed his stomach pudge. “You should take off your shirt.” You said. “To get cooler.” You found out a long time ago he didn’t see your impure ogling. At first you thought it was something he was ignoring or thought it was weird but then you blurted out you wanted to feel his chapstick and he actually gave you his chapstick.

“Yeah.” Like always he listened and agreed before going on. “So the epic tale goes a little like this; I wasn’t supposed to go to work today but I got roped in to do a half shift so when I got out I had to come straight here. Then the buses got out of order so I took the wrong one. I ended up a few blocks down and the next bus was going to make me even more late if it even got me here. So I ran.”

"You didn't have to do all that just to meet me." You knew what he was going to say. He was a creature of habit.

"I wanted to." Kind to a fault.  ->

-> There was one thing in your way of you asking to have him. "Oh, I have new pictures of Mayday." He was married, even had a kid.

And if I die before I wake

Summary: Now, I give my characters fucked up powers to the point I think I might be sadistic. So imagine not being able to die. Also I grew up very religious so I know this prayer very well.

I pray the lord my soul to take.

But you learned God didn't want you by his side. At the age fourteen you were in an accident. In the hospital you and your father were pronounced dead, but you woke up on the operating table. It was a miracle. Then you died in an alley, a mugging gone wrong. You looked out to the bustling street from the shadow and held a bleeding chest. But you did wake.

The great tale of Cain and Abel wasn't something that needed to be recited to you. It seemed to you like your father was Abel, blessed to salvation, and you were Cain, doomed to walk the earth. What was your crime? You couldn't imagine what you did as a child that warranted punishment but you did everything to repent for your sin.

At church there was a man, a broad man with posture somehow tensed and slouched praying in mumbling Spanish. He went when there were no sermons and less people, his time was for him and no one else. Just like you. So you did your best to not bother him. He seemed not to notice and it was nice for you. Together but not. You doubted he felt the same.

Then a fucking Rhino man busted into the hall and destroyed everything. You would say desecrated but you weren’t feeling particularly preachy after. Maybe that was why you were how you were. Spiderman was there to save the day and all was well for everyone else. You left through allies to succumb to your wounds, to bleed out praying it was the last time. As you stumbled you heard a person behind you. You told them you didn’t have any money or anything of value on your person. But they caught you and lowered you to the ground. They seemed to recognize nothing could be done so they just held your hand. You asked them to let you die alone and they shushed you.

You woke up to the sounds of ambulance sirens and you ran before you found out if they were for you or not. It was a traumatic event when you died but you steeled yourself first so you could get safe before you dealt with your mind. Like every time you went back to church. You followed the signs to a temporary place of worship to atone. 

The second day of your repent you saw the man and when he saw you he didn't move so you didn't notice him.

He grabs you because his knee jerk reaction is that you are still dying so he is trying to catch you before you fall

Say in Spanish you are haunting him

He is making a very big scene that he is then going to have to explain especially if he has to take a few steps

He looks you horrified and goes to you later to ask if you were okay alluding to the idea he knows you got hurt he just doesn’t know to what extent

Say in Spanish you are haunting him

He sees you but you don’t so he has time to collect himself before he goes to speak to you and you both have a half honest conversation (WINNER)

You do not admit you are repenting and it may or may not be obvious you are not praying for others

He says he was checking on you because he was there but you didn’t see him there and he may or may not have noticed exactly who you were

It's something you would never know but he did see you before he walked up. You figured as much but you never knew for sure. Unlike him you didn’t mutter your prayers but unlike him you made it very obvious how you were dealing with the prayers. He knew you were losing your mind.

He asked to sit with you before asking if you were okay. A small gesture, one you would have welcomed at any time but now, so soon after death, it was hard. He said he was checking up on you because he thought he saw you get hurt. You told him nothing of the sort happened and mentioned in passing you didn't see him there. You both were hiding, one just had a question that needed answering. ->

->You felt like you were being watched, when you were walking home from work, from church. Nueva York wasn't the safest place in the world but you had never felt like that. And it happened for a very good while before something came of it. A woman attacked you in any alley. You didn't know why but she said it was your fault. 

Spiderman swooped in and did his thing but added to the routine. He asked who you were and you panicked, rightfully so. "I'm not sure I follow."

"Most people don't get up after bleeding out. Answers, talk fast." He said walking forward. Slow, painfully slow. And you backed away even slower because you knew there was no way you would out run him.

"I don't know, it just happens." He kept walking. That wasn't enough. "I get back up and I can't explain it. Every time I think it's the end, it's not." It still wasn't enough. "I don't want to be like this. I just want to stay dead." That was enough.

Two weeks after the initial incident he finally came to you as a civilian again. Introduced himself and asked your name saying he had always seen you but never found a reason to speak. Finally a name to the face, Miguel O'hara. An overall quiet man, calm in nature and polite. He started to speak to you after that.

There was still the feeling of being watched, it must have not been the woman. You stopped and looked around. When you looked up you thought you saw something on the roof but then pigeons flew off so you brushed it off. But when the same thing happened again you thought maybe someone caught onto your living situation. Then again, maybe not.

The church was set up again and you thanked God. You didn't talk on the pews before him and he'd be the only person you would. It was pleasant, chattering whispers to not disturb like it wasn't just five people in the room spread out farther than any hearing range. The topic of jobs came up and you had an underwhelming answer. (He said he did a lot of computer work, whether it was at a computer or on you didn’t know./He said he was an engineer who worked on his time.) Not a lie.

A month went by and you acted on impulse, you asked if you could confess to him. He asked if he should be the one to hear it but you assured it wasn’t something you would be condemned for. You admitted you lied to him when you said you weren’t hurt after the church incident. You said you thought you were visited by an angel who was going to take you away but it wasn’t, it left you there.

[moonfurthetemmie]

Sometime after finding the last surviving records from Alinda and her team, and doing a little research himself, Deimos realizes he's going to need some help. maybe a lot of help.

He has to be very careful about who he asks.

Lodo and Bea seem like they'd be willing, but they also seem to be more afraid of Gonzalo and Petruccio than most of the rest of the manor. He's not convinced they wouldn't tell those two everything the moment they ask.

Antonio seems more likely to want to help, but Deimos isn't fluent in ASL which would make it pretty difficult to talk to him. A small hurdle, but he's not ready to jump it until he's assessed all of his options.

Sortino doesn't know shit, but as the maid and cook it would be very easy for him to hang around people under the pretense of cleaning to eavesdrop. Gonzalo and Petruccio may not suspect him of trying to stop them, too, even if they notice he's heard something he wasn't supposed to. which they likely will. He's not too eager to get on their bad side, though. He might not be willing to help.

He might not realize at first that Bella is 100% on Gonzalo and Petruccio's side, but it won't take long. Especially since, presently, no one really thinks he's going to try and work against them. Clearly they haven't convinced him to stay and help them, but he's doing an excellent job of feigning innocence so far.

Francisco seems to know a lot. Demios will definitely need to ask him some questions. But he's awfully scared of the pair as well, so he might be a risk.

Sforza...Deimos only met him once, but he doesn't like that there's so much of that blue magic all over Sforza's skin. He doesn't seem to be in any condition to help, anyways.

That leaves...Antonio, Francisco, and Sortino. Great. Well, that's three more potential allies than he had before.

He decides that, ultimately, it would be a good idea to learn ASL anyways. It looks like everyone in the manor is fluent, so they could talk about things in complete silence. Anyone who saw them would know what they were saying, but it would be better than speaking out loud. Theoretically.

With that in mind, he asks Gonzalo and Petruccio to teach him. As expected, they're delighted to! They love hanging out with him. And if he wants to be able to talk to and understand everyone here, well...that's most likely good for them.

They're aware that he's still suspicious and wary. That he's been wandering off on his own quite a bit. But they also know that he's still struggling to keep his distance from them. They're quite confident that they'll get him eventually. If they can't convince him nicely, they have other options. They'd rather not, buuuut if they have to...

he is not aware of their backup plan. if he doesn't figure out how Bella ended up being such a trusted member of the team, he's prooobably fucked.

deimos made a slight miscalculation. they're very patient teachers with this and it's making him like them more and he's pretty sure they're not doing it just to gain his trust. help him

anyways. One by one, he manages to get Antonio, Francisco, and Sortino's help.

Sortino's not too easy to convince, but Deimos manages to convince him that while he doesn't have a plan to stop them yet, he does have a plan should Gonzalo and Petruccio find out about his helpers. Deimos doesn't elaborate, but he promises that he'll make sure that Sortino, and whoever else he manages to recruit, won't get in too much trouble if they're found out. When Deimos mentions having some info on what all is going on here, Sortino becomes a little more interested.

Francisco was pretty sure Deimos was starting to sympathize with Gonzalo and Petruccio, so he's very suspicious when Deimos comes to him. But Deimos says he's found something very interesting, he he'd like a bit of help from Francisco when he goes through it. He can tell that Francisco knows a lot about what's happening. He hints that he thinks what he's found is the answer, and he'd like to see if any of it matches up with what Francisco knows. The prospect of finally getting the answer to this puzzle, as well as maybe being able to stop Gonzalo and Petruccio from murdering, kidnapping, or torturing more people, convinces him to help.

Antonio is surprisingly easy to convince. Deimos is the one who's suspicious now, but Antonio tells him that Gonzalo and Petruccio killed his family in front of him, and are the reason he lost his hearing. Of course he wants to stick it to them. If Deimos can promise that he can keep his help from getting too fucked up if Gonzalo and Petruccio find out what they're doing, he'll be happy to help. Keep in mind, he still has absolutely no idea what Alinda had been doing, and currently doesn't have any reason to suspect that it had anything to do with Gonzalo and Petruccio.

His little team now assembled, he tells the three of them, separately, to meet him in Francisco's office around midnight. Gonzalo and Petruccio should be asleep, so they won't notice a thing.

Deimos goes through the basic shit. He found this stuff in an abandoned building, looks like some people were trying to figure out what was going on and how to stop it. Long story short, they think Yighraru is some kind of eldritch god.

and all three of them go "huh?" and then Antonio and Francisco, but especially Francisco, go "oh god that explains everything"

they fill in whatever Sortino didn't know about, which is a lot because he was, up until now, trying to keep his head down and stay out of everything.

Beyond that, the only other solid idea that I have is that in the very beginning of their notes, Alinda put basically the entire story of why she even exists, and what her mission is.

While she never said a word about her mission, she did tell Antonio what she was, and that she was given a super secret mission the day she was born. She never went into where she came from.

Some months into their alliance, Deimos lets the others see more of the documents for themselves.

Deimos may have changed the names in the document, but so much of that opening was so achingly familiar that he had to ask Deimos if he remembered what the name actually was.

And by this point, Deimos has found out what happened to Alinda and her team. So when Antonio very shakily tells him that 'Peridot' was his wife, who told him a good chunk of the stuff in here, Deimos has to figure out the gentlest way to inform him that Gonzalo and Petruccio completely wiped out the whole group.

Somehow, despite everything, it just got even more personal for Antonio.

It wasn't random. They specifically targeted Alinda. And for some goddamn reason, they decided that they should kill her and their ten year old daughter, who had nothing to do with everything. And that they should specifically wait, until Antonio got home, and could watch.

anyways. antonio's mad

[ophelianated]

have i ever talked about how much i looooove working in customer service (contact centre agent, to be exact)

to all the entitled bitches out there who treat us like servants at best and dirt on their shoe at worst on a daily basis, please for the LOVE OF GOD:

take five minutes, just five minutes out of your life to do some research by yourself before bothering us. we're not fucking google, and being treated as such gets real tiring real fast. we should be your last resort

we're not therapists either. i repeat, We. Are. Not. Therapists. we understand that you're frustrated, but our job description doesn't include emotional labour. we're here to help you, not listen to you vent. if you need a minute, hour, day to get yourself together enough to shift your focus back on problem solving, you can just contact again later. don't take your anger and desperation out on us. all telling us how you'll have to tell your children now that they can't see their favourite team play because you can't afford to pay a fee will accomplish is make us upset too because we're not allowed to make exceptions - "gesture of goodwill" is not a concept all companies support. all yelling and cursing at us will do is earn you an abusive customer badge and make us feel like shit. one would think that this would be a no brainer, yet here we are. here we FUCKING ARE

nor are we complaint forms. take your spiel where it belongs so it can arrive in the hands of someone in the correct department specialized to deal with more complex issues, like ones that require an official investigation for instance. believe it or not, we have a complaint form for a reason. describe your problem as concisely as you can and don't waste our time, especially because some of us are micromanaged down to how much time we spend with each customer, and we WILL get in trouble if we go over a certain limit

exercise some patience and understand that Rome wasn't built in a day. some processes take time, and no, in most cases we have no way of expediting them, especially if we're escalating something to another department. adding "urgent" at the end only serves to piss people off

if we say we can't do/don't know something because we physically don't have the method or authority to execute what you want us to/access the information you seek, believe us. unless you're being particularly rude, i promise we're not trying to pass you off, we genuinely have no way of helping you

on that note: if we say that our company policy forbids us from doing shit, believe us. and ask yourself if YOU would risk YOUR job for a random stranger before demanding that we do it anyway and getting mad when we say no

if we say that our supervisors can't do anything about your problem either, BELIEVE US. so many of you mfs think that supervisors are above company policy for some reason. i'm telling you, they have waaaaaaay less authority than you think, and if they actually gave us the go ahead to kiss your asses to high heaven and do whatever you ask, them and us would be fired at the exact same speed

if we tell you where you can find the information you seek and more, don't be a lazy piece of shit and actually check it out. if we spell an entire process out for you so it's clear what you have to do and how, don't ask if we can do it instead. you're adults. exercise some goddamn self-reliance. i've had customers asking me to cherry pick and send them via chat only the relevant contents of the page i literally had just sent them the link to a few seconds prior because they didn't want to click on said link and spend TWO MINUTES skimming the page to find what info they needed and within what article. why don't i chew your fucking food for you as well while i'm at it. tie your shoelaces. wipe your ass maybe. this also gets old real fucking fast

if we're communicating via email or chat, read what we send you. yes, even if it's a wall of text. so many conversations could take half the time if you people just fucking read shit*

don't waste your breath. threatening to sue the company will not intimidate us into doing what you want. we get threats like that every day and (unfortunately) they never go anywhere

understand. process it on a cognitive level. make it a part of you carnally if necessary. but i'm begging you please find a way to get it through that thiccc skull: we don't know every single one of our fellow employees personally. neither do we have access to the complete list of people working for the company. i have no fucking clue who the blond guy who was rude to your mother yesterday three countries away is, nor do i have the power to get him fired (refer back to the point about complaints on how to proceed in this situation)

if YOU are the one who fucked up royally and the situation is beyond saving, THAT'S ON YOU. entirely on YOU. don't blame us for not having a solution to any and all mistakes you bitches make. we clean up your messes more than enough as is, because some of you apparently can't even spell your honest to god child's name right. given of course that you don't just forget about them entirely (both true stories)

read the terms and conditions. i don't care if it's long and dry and tedious. it's also sneaky and elusive and contains a shitton of info companies don't shove in your face, which is why you should study that shit like it's holy scripture before you do anything

no, you can't get a refund for everything. life doesn't work that way. deal or die

understand that we don't make the policies of the company we work for. yes, we're aware that some (or even most) of them suck, but we gotta eat somehow. we're not the company, and we're not the enemy. i repeat, we are not the company, and we are not the enemy

on the same vein: make peace with the fact that most of us are not malicious. we don't sit around rubbing our hands, coming up with different ways to fuck up your day and steal your money. we're trying to make the best of what we're working with. if you don't like the answer we give you, chances are we don't either, but there's nothing we can do and we feel horrible about it. i know it's easy to feel like we don't help you because we don't want to when you're being told no over and over, but resist the temptation to make us the big bad in your head. i promise most of us would love to help you, and it feels incredibly shitty if we can't, especially since helping people out is the whole purpose of our job

our training can't prepare us for each and every scenario we face on the job. it's just not possible. be reasonable and patient if yours happens to be an extremely tricky case that even our most experienced colleagues haven't encountered. we are people, and we are doing our best

*actual conversation i had with a customer (kept vague for security purposes):

me: We can't do x because the other people with you don't have the necessary thing y. We in the contact centre will have to give them y by [insert explanation about the process].

customer: But they don't have y.

me: Yes, that's the problem. They will need it before we can proceed.

customer. Oh. How can I get them y?

[drsorrell]

Wed. 9.6.23

Announcements & Reminders

I'm at the table right outside our classroom hallway every morning from 8-8:30 am. I'm happy to talk about anything or look at any work.

I hope you had a good break! I went on my first real early fishing trip with my son, and he broke his rod and then dropped mine in the middle of a lake, so, you know...

I'll take a look at your Chapter Tutorials and InQuizitives later this week just make sure you've at least started them.

8:30 am Class: We'll have a visit in class on Friday from our course Writing Associate, Kyra (the tutor specifically assigned to our class).

There's a lot to do in class on Friday, so be ready: a writing chapter + two readings. We'll work a lot on making connections among the different readings to prepare you for the outline-draft-paper writing portion of this unit that starts next week.

Updated Writing Center Info for Fall 2023. Sign up for an appointment here: https://outlook.office365.com/book/SVCWritingCenter@SaintVincentCollege.onmicrosoft.com/.

Discussion/Activity: We'll do this in the Schoology discussion forum "Burwell, Lehman, Moro Discussion (in-class on Mon. 9.6)." I'll also post the prompt below (indented).

Discussing Burwell, Lehman, Moro: I think we’ll do this in groups, but we might try a whole-class discussion. I usually avoid those because people tend to stare at their desks and try not to talk if I’m standing in the front of the room trying to moderate what you guys say, so please pleasantly surprise me if we try a whole-class discussion out today ;) ✪ The benefit of a whole-class discussion: We just talk, and I will post notes on what you say in the forum! BURWELL. Burwell has worked for various presidential administrations and is in her last year as the president of American University, where she made $1,066,509 in 2019 (!)..  ✪ Burwell writes, “Today’s young adults seem to arrive at college with less resiliency and a lower appetite for risk and failure. In raising their children, parents have focused more on protecting them from stress and anxiety and less on teaching them how to cope” (560). ✪✪ Do you agree about students being more afraid not to do well? Do you agree about changing parenting styles? If yes, think of some examples of each. LEHMAN. Lehman works for the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, which is a conservative organization (no judgment either way--just giving you the information!).  ✪ Lehman writes, “But in focusing on the scale of the problem, we sometimes forget to think about how all that debt affects people's lives” (568). ✪✪ What comparison is Lehman trying to make between “focusing on the scale of the problem” and "thinking about how all that debt affects people's lives”? What approach do you think would work the best to make people aware of and do something about the situation? MORO. Beyond the fact that she graduated from Notre Dame around 2018, Gabriela Moro has done a good job of hiding on the internet, so I can’t tell you much about her beyond that she wrote this as a freshman for our kind of class!  ✪ Morowrites, “Thus, even though minority student clubs can lead to self-segregation among students and result in less cross-cultural interaction, their benefits to minority students suggest that a balance needs to be found between providing support for minorities and avoiding segregation of these groups from the rest of the student body” (545). ✪✪ So Moro is obviously looking for a “balance” between a personal/cultural identity and a large sense of belonging at college? How best do you think this could be achieved at SVC? Real suggestions, please! ✪✪✪ Extra-credit +1 point on Final Draft #1 if you can actually find out anything about Moro beyond her blurb at the end of this site: https://freshwriting.nd.edu/volumes/2016/essays/minority-student-clubs-segregation-or-integration.

Homework for Friday 9.8

◆ Read Ch. 2 (32-46) + complete Ch. 2 Tutorial.

◆ Read Ch. 21, Addison (527-530) and Clark (531-537).

◆ Complete InQuizitive: “Elements of Argument.”

Other Extra Credit: Read this article, called "You Learn the Value of a College Degree When You Live Without One." Then tell us about it in class on Friday. That's all. +1 point on Final Draft #1.

There shouldn't be a paywall, but in case there is, I also uploaded it to Drive as a PDF here.

[dovabunny]

Part 7 - Come Home to Me

"WHAT!? Are you out of your mind!?" Gaz yells back as Ghost takes out another agent.

"It's the only way. I'll keep them from setting off the bomb, get out and go help with the evacuation!"

"But, Ghost-"

"That's an order, Sargent!"

Gaz watched as the Ghost settled his body in front of the detonation controls, gun to the door.

He was totally at peace with the fact that he wasn't going to make it out alive.

Well, Gaz wasn't at peace with that! He looked around to memorize as much as he could then ran.

Gaz was no expert, but he knew enough of demolitions to know what to look for.

Price had the bomb squad there in minutes, but there was a huge problem.

"What you're describing, Sargent, is not a bomb that exists in our books. We wouldn't know how to disarm it."

"So... What are you saying?"

The head of the London bomb squad shrugged. "Going in there to disarm something we don't know is not a risk we can take. We need to evacuate. I only know one man who could make or break custom bombs like that, and he retired."

"Call him! Now!"

Ghost took down another suicidal maniac. He'd taken two bullets, one to his right shoulder, the arm now limp at his side while he shoots with his left. He just hopes enough people have been evacuated, he can't hold on.

He should be focused, but his every thought was of Johnny.

His smile, the feeling of his hands, his scent, his voice. The memories of their night together runs through his mind over and over, stopping before the morning. He hated himself for how he cherished those beautiful memories, but a dying man has no guilt. Only regrets.

He always knew he'd die on the job. Guess he's kinda relieved he could choose the way he goes.

He has no one to come home to, after all. No open arms, warm nights, for Christmas cards or morning kisses.

The one chance he had at that he broke with his own clumsy, greedy hands.

"Bravo, how copy." His comms buzzed to life and broke him out of the memories he wanted to drown in.

"Copy."

"We got a demos expert, I'm handing over."

Before Ghost could interject a new voice reaches him.

It feels like a punch to the gut.

"Can you tell me what you see, Lt?"

There's silence for a moment and Soap wonders if the lieutenant, 'Ghost' they called him didn't hear him. He goes to repeat himself into the mic that had just been shoved into his face by the Captain when a voice responded.

"Johnny?"

"...Simon?"

It was Simon. Simon was Ghost.

He knew he was speaking to a Lieutenant, and Simon had once told him they call him Ghost - but thought it was just a nickname because of the mask.

Knowing he was talking to Simon, /his/ Simon...

He clears his throat.

"Tell me what you see in as much detail as you can, please."

Ghost knew it was Soap, but the snap back to professionalism felt like a cold slap.

He goes on to describe the explosives, the box, the cables, and the screen. The same info Gaz gave them.

"It's custom, alright," Soap confirms. "If you look at the back, what's the cable color?"

Ghost grits his teeth against the pain erupting from his gut as he turns and reaches for the screen. "Its- blue and yellow." He pants.

"Okay. You'll have to strip the cables down and separate the wiring."

"Negative."

"What?"

"I...I can't. I'm too injured."

A beat of silence.

"Simon? What's wrong?"

Ghost wants to cry. Hearing Soap's sweet, caring voice is the last memory he could only wish for. Maybe the gods don't hate him.

"Shot in the gut and arm. Only have the use of one hand, can't pull myself up either."

"Then... Why? Why did you stay?" Soap wants to scream but it sounds like begging.

"Someone had to, we needed time. Not like I have a family or anyone to get home to. It was a tactical choice. Your voice being the last I hear, feels like a blessing I don't deserve. Thank you."

"Oh god... No no nonono..." Soap starts to panic. It's only him and Roach, the rest all running about either making or following orders as an entire street is being emptied in minutes.

He turns to Roach. "What building is this? Where are we?"

'Its the old library, Black Road.'

Oh, oh Soap knows the building! He spent countless nights studying for his SAS exams here! If he wasn't on base, he was here.

He listens to the yelling and panic around him, feels the tap of his stick on the sidewalk.

"I'm coming, Si. Hold on!"

And Soap RUNS.

He hears Roach's broken screaming and feels rotten, he knows how much it hurts Roach to make noise, but he can't stop - not now. Using his stick he navigates his way on the walkway around the side to the fire ladder and starts climbing.

Roach screams till he cries, what the fuck is that Scottish idiot thinking!?

Well, ain't no way in hell he's letting his Scottish idiot go in more blind than necessary! He runs to a soldier standing nearby and rips the rifle from his grip before bolting for the building nextdoor

True to his callsign he scales the building like a creatures and settles onto the roof, lining the scope up to clear the way for Soap - shooting enemies in hiding and stumble hazards alike as Soap barely slows down.

Meanwhile the cursing soldier gets Gaz's attention. And Nik's.

They hear the blind veteran suddenly just ran into the building, and the other man that came with him had stolen a rifle was now sniping from the roof across! The orders come for the final clear but Gaz and Nik share a look that says the same thing. 'Fuckit'

Soap runs with no thought but to get to the basement, to get to Simon. He should probably be paying attention to the sniper that seems to be missing him the whole time, or the helicopter he can hear too close for the evacuation order.

He doesn't slow down, trusting his feet from memory, his stick slapping against the walls to guide himself down the hallways and fire escape where he used to smoke or make out.

It isn't perfect, he trips and falls and slams into walls and desks, his tears are from fury and pain.

Ghost is getting sleepy. There hasnt been anyone in a while, maybe they're all finally dead? But then why does he still hear shooting? Timer says 4minutes left.

Soap said he was on his way, he can imagine the Scott cursing as Price drags him away to safety.

He smiles a little.

He lets thoughts of Johnny consume him again, wanting it to be his last - not the pain or taste of blood or smell of gunpowder and rust. He feels Johnny kiss, tastes his lips and skin, he remembers his sweet smile, his dirty moans, his heartbeat when he was safe in his arms...

Ghost is rudely startled from his memories again. He tries to focus for what noise it was, when he hears it echo. "SIMON! SIMON!!"

Johnny? How? He shouldn't be here! Why-

"JOHNNY?"

"WHERE ARE YOU? I CANT FIND YOU!"

Johnny is here, he came for him

"FOLLOW MY VOICE, JOHNNY."

GhostSoap AU Concept - blind love

Soap is an army vet who lost his sight in an explosion. He now works as a masseur, he's good with his hands and his options are limited.

Ghost is a scarred, disfigured man in pain with insecurities he hid behind thick walls and a mask.

Ghost's body is a mess of injuries old and new, he can't even remember what it's like to not be in pain but always pushes through it. That he's getting older doesn't help either.

Until his back locks up mid mission and he's left in pain that has him limping and wincing.

Price has had enough of him dodging the question and actually orders him to get it looked at. Ghost refuses. First, he will not take off his shirt in front of a stranger, and he most certainly will NOT let a stranger touch him.

Price sighs and says he knows just the place.

If it wasn't an order Ghost wouldn't be here, no way in hell. He's just gonna go in, tell the guy to say he was here and leave.

It's a small parlour, if it can even be called that. A small two story building with a tiny waiting room and a door leading to the back.

But it was at the edge of town away from the bustle of the city, the wilderness literally just across the river next to it.

It helped a bit, the place being so out of the way. Ghost appreciated privacy, after all.

There was no one in the waiting room, but the door jingled when he entered. Soon enough a voice yells 'with you in a sec!', accent thick and Scottish.

THAT was unexpected. He was expecting a woman, possibly old and creepy. It helped a little bit more.

Then the door to the back swung open and he lost his breath a little.

The man walks out with a beaming smile, hair in a fkn mohawk that somehow looked great on him, built like a damn rugby player.

But it was his eyes.

A striking deep blue, but clouded.

At Ghost's silence the man's smile is a bit more forced. "I can tell you're there, ya know."

Ghost snapped out of his daze and stuck out his hand in greeting, then felt like a fking idiot and yanked it back. "It's Ghost, I mean, Simon. Price called about me."

"Ah. The lieutenant! Price told me you might be a flight risk," he chuckled, but somehow it didn't feel condescending or cruel as laughter towards him usually was. It was friendly, warm.

He felt entirely off kilter.

"I'm John MacTavish, call me Soap." He stuck out his hand. Ghost took it and shook, feeling callouses on his soft hands.

"Kind of name is Soap?"

Soap smiled. "It was my call sign. Was called by it so long anything else feels odd."

"You're military?"

"Was. Just entered SAS when," he gestures at his eyes with a strained smile.

Ghost didn't know how to respond, which Soap must've picked up on too cause he quickly followed with a "So! Shall we get started?"

Without waiting for a response, Soap walked to the back, Ghost snapping out of it and following after a beat.

He stood in the doorway and looked around. It had soft lighting, soft music from somewhere that sounded almost Celtic, it smelled... Amazing. Gentle and warm, but no distinct scent he could place.

Soap was moving around with precision, washing his hands and putting things ready.

Ghost had fully intended to go through with his plan - pay the masseuse to tell Price he was here then leave. Maybe buy a heat patch form the pharmacy.

But here, now, in this room with Soap - a veteran who'll understand, who can't see how ugly disfigured he is...

He decides to give it a chance. For the first time since he became a dead man, he's going to get out of his shell and try to take care of himself, to stop waiting for his inevitable death and actually work towards getting better.

In the best hands he could wish for.

[lookinghalfacorpse]

in the wild all lessons last - extra scene 1

hello!! thinking of posting extra scenes and other random stuff that doesn’t fit into my fics on tumblr! if i get enough i’ll compile them on ao3 but for now y’all can have this

takes place between chapters 2 & 3 (dream is taking his first nap outside the torture box)

read the full fic here , info and trigger warnings here

“He looks like he’ll just… stop breathing at any moment,” Phil said with a nervous smile, “doesn’t he?”

Technoblade nodded.  They sent Dream to bed an hour ago and checked on him twice during that time, and he hadn’t moved a single muscle since they last saw him.  Techno grew all-too familiar with Dream’s sleeping habits after spending three months in an obsidian box with him, and even his rest seemed restless.  His hands would wander and grasp, his breath would hitch and sigh at random.  But now, looking small and unguarded in the center of the guest room bed, Dream was completely still and his breath was horrifyingly slow.  There were several, long seconds between each inhale and exhale, and it was far too easy to imagine his chest stilling completely.  

“He didn’t sleep like this in the prison,” Techno said.

“I believe it.”  Phil sat on the edge of the mattress and took hold of Dream’s wrist, gently turning it and placing two fingers there, feeling his pulse.  Dream didn’t stir or react.  “He’s exhausted.  I was almost putting him to sleep in the bath, did you see that?”

“I did see that.”

“This is probably the most comfortable he’s been in months, I guess it’s not surprising that he’s sleeping so… so deeply.”  Brows furrowed, Phil switched to feeling the pulsepoint on Dream’s neck instead.  “He’s just making me nervous.”

Techno crossed his arms across his chest.  His body cast a long shadow over the mattress, dwarfing the other two men.  Both Philza and Dream were so damn small.  So much for hibernating, he supposed; he should be awake to protect them.  “Think he’ll make it?”

“Oh, he’ll be alright, mate.  Don’t you worry.  He survived this long with very minimal care; he’ll thrive with good food and some careful treatment. If we sent him out into the wilderness, I think he would’ve dropped by now.  But he’ll be fine here.”

The dogs were curious about Dream.  Many of them stopped in, sniffed at him, and then went about their way, while others investigated the worst of his injuries, undoubtedly smelling blood there.  Some welcomed themselves to his bed and laid alongside him, thankfully avoiding his wounds.  All the commotion still didn’t wake him, and he didn’t even move much in response.  Even his hair, which Phil tucked behind his ear during their last check-in, didn’t budge.

One dog was keeping a diligent eye on Dream since only a few minutes after he fell asleep.  One of Techno’s biggest pups-- a survivor who endured Doomsday and all of the many battles that followed.  She didn’t hop onto the mattress, but instead opted to sit like a statue near the nightstand.  Her eyes, dark and observant, watched Phil’s hands as he quickly examined the bandages that were within reach.

Techno smiled.  She was going to do this whether or not he asked her to, so he might as well make it official.  “Come up here, Em,” he said, patting the mattress.

She obeyed, jumping up and sitting exactly where she was instructed.  Techno took one of Dream’s hands in his own and displayed his palm to her.  “This is Dream, okay?  I dunno if you remember him or not, he was pretty different when you last saw him.  He’s hurt right now, see?”

Em sniffed at his hand, nose lingering at the missing finger, long black eyelashes fluttering.

“He’s yours.  Watch him.  Make sure he doesn’t do anythin’ stupid, and if he needs somethin’, tell me or Phil.  Probably Phil.”

Risking a glance at Philza, he saw his old friend smiling.

“This is gonna be a tough job, alright?  This guy is stubborn, and he pushes too far.”  Em traced her nose up Dream’s arm, nestling it into his neck as she sniffed at him.  She lifted his jaw a bit in her investigation, and his next exhale came as a sigh.  “This is the last thing I’ll ever ask of you.  I’ve put you through enough.  Sound like a deal?”

Without any further complaint or suggestion, Em laid down and placed her head directly in the center of Dream’s chest.  A protective and reassuring position-- and, of course, it put her ears directly on top of both his lungs and heart.

Phil chuckled beside him.  One of those low, throaty chuckles he did when he was using those mind-reading powers that Techno could never get him to admit to.

“What is it, Philza?”

“Oh, nothing, mate.”  Phil patted a hand on Em’s back.  “I’ll feel a little better with someone else watching his vitals.  The biscuits are probably done, we should go take a look.”

[goddevouringserpent]

c'mon girlies (gender neutral) time for the SLOW YET STEADY CORRUPTION ARC, the DISCOVERY OF THE MOST FUCKED UP PARTS OF OUR SELF WHICH WE EMBRACE LIKE THEY'RE WORTH NURTURING BECAUSE WE ARE TOO AFRAID OF THE ALTERNATIVE, the ULTIMATE SACRIFICE OF OUR MORALITY FOR THE SAKE OF LOVE OR SOMETHING THAT BURNS LIKE ONLY LOVE COULD, TH

anyway, this is Angel, or yuor devil 😈, my MC for @homecomingvn ! definitely gonna be romancing Henry; still not sure if he's also going to be my MC for Lyra or if I'll make a different one for her, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it

more info about Angel below the cut because I cannot shut up ever. it's my curse and I bear it with dignity.

if you ever try to call Angel out on anything, her go-to reply will be "aw, do you really think I would do that, can't you see I'm an angel?" & a face that's a weird mixture of 😏 and 🥺. don't ask how he pulls that one off, it's a secret between him and god and neither of them's telling (when the Nonbinary hit, she briefly considered changing her name for something that sparked more gender joy, but ultimately decided against it because commitment to the bit is her #1 priority.)



I put 'chemistry' as one of the things he likes, but really she's super into anything science-related, chemistry is just her passion. one of the STEM bitches, basically. maybe a bit light on the TE part, but he would still read a 700-page book about, I don't know, How To Build Some Big Shit Like A Bridge Or Aqueduct and enjoy every bit of it. which doesn't necessarily mean he'd understand every bit of it, mind you, but it's all about the energy I guess



related to the above: WILL infodump about her interests if given the chance. WILL NOT stop unless directly and firmly told to. if you want him to shut up but are too polite to do anything about it? good fucking luck. Angel can keep going for hours and that is a promise.



hates the nickname 'Angie' and will never respond to it. will accept 'Annie' from friends, but really they tend to prefer more personalized nicknames—like Henry's 'Buttercup'—or just plain ol' Angel



extremely ride-or-die. if she considers you one of 'her people' there's next to nothing you could do to make her change her mind or give up on you. (though, to be honest, he probably IS going to be very confused as to how he managed to befriend not one Fucked Up Weirdo but two. didn’t even know there were two Fucked Up Weirdos in town! gotta be something in the water.)



I don't know what his job is going to be yet, but I do know he's already had like 15 jobs minimum; all because she's very thorough about "following your dreams" and it just so happens that her dreams generally last around 10-20 business days before he moves on to another dream. Angel, stop hoarding jobs, you fucking maniac. you're gonna destroy the economy. and yes that's sexy conceptually but you gotta be more careful about it bro (gender neutral)



tends to play wizards in D&D/any TTRPG. she likes the complexity and versatility.



speaking of, it's time for the most nightmarish scary fact about Angel, VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED READER BEWARE: she thinks THAC0 makes perfect sense and is intuitive & easy to understand. if you just felt a cold chill run down your spine, it's okay, I did too 😔 (in this house we tolerate AD&D in a "respect your elders" kinda way, but fuck THAC0 what was up with that shit)

Notes:

I don't actually know if school newspapers are a thing or I got tricked by media from the USA and also my ex-girlfriend; it's just that the concept of being some sort of unhinged investigative journalist at the tender age of 14something+ was too fitting for Angel and I had to take the risk of looking like a clown.

the Picrew used is Black Centered Picrew <3 by naylissah. I'd link it but I've been led to believe that This Website makes it so that you can't put external links or the post won't show up in tags/mentions, so uh. it's on the first page of Picrew, if you can't find it send me a DM or something??

[watchmegetobsessed]

TO LOVE AND BE LOVED - Part One (Harry Styles)

a/n: oh my god i am sooo thankful for the love the masterlist got with just so little info about the story! it means so much to me and i really hope i won’t disappoint you with this story! i was planning to post the first part on tuesday but i got excited bc of all the feedback and reactions and decided to start earlier, so here it is, part one of TLABL, a story im kind of proud of and very happy to share! please drop by my ask box or leave your thoughts on the story, i would love to hear everything from you guys!

pairing: CEO!Dad!Harry X Reader

warning: mentions of death, cheating and divorce

word count: 11.2k

SERIES MASTERPOST masterlist

“I hope you realize this holds nothing against you, we all love and appreciate you and your work, but we had to face some unexpected problems this past year.”

You sit in front of Claire, your boss completely dumbfounded, not even comprehending what she is saying completely. You came to work this morning absolutely oblivious that today is going to be your last day of work at the daycare you’ve been working at for over two years now.

“I’m sorry, but last time you let us in on the budget you didn’t bring up any complication that might have indicated someone could lose their job, so what possible problem could have come up so abruptly?” you ask with a shocked and nervous chuckle. Part of you kind of hopes this is just some stupid joke she is playing on you, but Claire is not one to make games out of such serious things. Letting out a tired sigh she pushes her reading glasses up to the top of her head into her carefully curled hair.

“Look, I’m really trying not to make a big deal out of it, but we had to make some cuts on the budget. The kitchen and gymnasium renovation was completely unplanned and it kicked us in the butt. We are making some changes about the groups this year and it was made that it can be solved with one less person on the team. I’m sorry it had to be you, but the decision had to be made.”

“But why me?” you press. “There are two people who have been working for a shorter period of time here, didn’t I earn your trust during my time here?”

“It’s not about that, Y/N,” Claire shakes her head.

“Then what is this about?”

“If you are so keen on knowing, we’ve… received a few… complaints.” Your eyebrows shoot up to your hairline, this is the first time you’re hearing about it.

“Complaints?”

“Yes. Some parents are not quite the fan of the kind of mentality you are using while teaching the kids.”

“What are you talking about?” you ask, feeling all the blood rushing out of your face. This is starting to get way too nasty. Claire pinches the bridge of her nose before leaning onto her desk, clasping her hands together.

“I know that you are quite the free spirit and want to teach the kids about openness and acceptance, but not everyone is as rainbow as you are. Some kids brought the word home about what kind of books you’ve been reading and we’ve gotten a few concerns about you basically promoting the LGBTQ community for the kids.”

“I’m not promoting, I’m trying to teach them to accept everyone just the way they are, how can that upset anyone?!”

“Well, it does. The committee had to make a decision on who we should let go and many agreed that it might be the safest decision to make it be… you.”

You’re about to faint. You are sure you are about to fall off this chair and just black out. How can someone get mad about you reading stories about acceptance and treating everyone equally? What kind of monster can see it as a bad thing? And now you are losing your job over such a stupid thing that you don’t even feel responsible for.

Though you’d love to stay and try to convince Claire to not let you go, you know the decision has been made and if you’re being honest, you don’t feel comfortable anymore working at a place where parents tell you off for teaching important values for their kids. Sadly, but you sign all paperwork about your immediate parting and you leave Claire’s office to pack your stuff.

“Miss Y/N! Miss Y/N!” Izzy, one of the sweetest girls in your group basically launches herself at you, smashing against your legs as she hugs you happily. “Do you want to see what I just painted?” She blinks up at you with her gorgeous green eyes and your heart breaks that you won’t get to see her again.

“Oh, Sweetie. I have to—you know what? Sure. Show me your painting,” you smile at her warmly. You can’t say no to her, not when this is the last time you get to see her.

As you’re cleaning out your locker in the break room, Heather walks in and stops in her tracks, seeing you with your gloomy face as you pack everything into a cardboard box.

“What the hell are you doing?” she questions right away. The two of you have known each other for years now, you did the same master’s programme and somehow ended up working here together, carrying on the friendship you’ve formed through your school years.

“I was… fired,” you sigh, wincing at the words.

“What?! Why?”

“Apparently, we are having some budget problems with all the renovations that was made recently and unbeknownst to me, some parents have been complaining about my openness with kids so I was the lucky one to part ways with.”

“That’s fucking bullshit! The kids adore you, how can someone complain about something like that?”

“Don’t know, ask them if you ever find out who they are,” you mumble under your breath as you shut the now empty locker closed. “I’m sorry we can’t carpool anymore,” you pout at her.

“No fucks given about that, what are you gonna do now?” she asks, seemingly very bummed at the news that you won’t be working at the same place now.

“I don’t know,” you shrug. “I guess I’ll have to find something new if I don’t want to end up on the streets,” you mumble.

“Oh girl, I’m so sorry,” Heather sighs pulling you into a hug. “Why don’t we go out for drinks on Friday? Everything is on me!”

“Don’t act like I’m already broke, makes me feel like a loser.”

“Sorry,” she scowls. “Just want to brighten you up a little. Meet me at seven at that Mexican place, how does that sound?”

“Stuffing my face with nachos and tequila? Sounds like the best plan I could wish for.”

You waste no time arriving home after your worst day at work. You jump right into the job ads, looking for basically anything that might help you out of this impossible situation. Sending your resume to as many places as possible, you get a few callbacks the next few days, but you only make it to one interview on Friday and that doesn’t go well either. The man who calls in for an open position at a private kindergarten turns out to be a total snob and he doesn’t find your free spirit too fitting with the profile of his institution so you get rejected at the end of the interview.

You head out to meet Heather feeling like shit. You’ve been unemployed for four days, but it’s already breaking your spirits.

“You know what? Clair is a bitch for giving in to the complaints,” Heather slams her fourth shot glass on the table with a grimace. “She should have defended you!”

“I’m sure she just didn’t want to get into any disagreement. Some of the parents donate great amounts to the school and Claire would never risk losing that money,” you sigh rolling your eyes.

“Okay, but she is being very… not inclusive,” she narrows her eyes. “Firing someone for teaching the kids openness? Bullshit.”

“I’m just sad I don’t get to see the kids anymore. They really grew close to my heart.”

“The little fuckers can be so damn cute, almost make me want to have one.” Heather sighs, downing another shot before pulling the nachos closer to her. You laugh at her vulgar reaction, she has always had quite a dirty mouth but somehow she controls herself well around the kids. “How has the job hunting been?”

“Horrible,” you growl in frustration. There are not many that offer a good paycheck and the few that does are these posh places that expect you to treat the kids like they are made out of gold which is ridiculous. That’s not how you raise a kid!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sure something will come up soon. Why don’t you look into nanny jobs, have you thought about that?”

“What do you mean?” you furrow your eyebrows, popping some chips into your mouth.

“A lot of people prefer having nannies for their little children, some even want them to move in. My brother’s ex-girlfriend was a live-in nanny for about two years and she earned a shit ton of money, because she didn’t have to pay rent and a good chunk of the food, because the parents just treated her like part of the family and bought groceries for five people instead of four.”

“I’m not sure I’m cut out for that kind of stuff.”

“What, earning money?” Heather scoffs.

“No, living with a stranger.”

“Most of the time the nanny gets like a separated place so it wouldn’t be that bad, but you know what’s good for you. It was just an idea,” she shrugs.

Soon enough you drop any work talk not wanting to ruin the mood. You enjoy some time away from the stress of job hunting and you’re just trying to have fun with your best friend. You start talking about nostalgic memories from college and end up looking up people you graduated with on social media, checking out what they’ve been up to in the past years.

“Alright, I’m gonna go to the restroom quickly, watch out for my drink,” you announce pushing your drink closer to Heather as you head towards the restrooms.

There’s a bit of a line so you stand behind two girls chatting about some cute guy they just met and leaning against the wall you close your eyes for a moment, feeling the drinks hitting you in the head. You’re not used to drinking, haven’t really had the time to get drunk too much lately and it’s saddening to think that now that you’re unemployed, you could black out every day, you wouldn’t have anywhere to show up in the morning.

Getting deep in your thoughts you almost don’t even notice that your phone is buzzing in your pocket. When you finally realize you pull it out of your back pocket and look down at the unknown number with a scowl. You quickly leave your spot in the line and rush out to hear something as you answer the call.

“Hello?”

“Hi, I hope I’m not calling at an inconvenient time, I’m Harry Styles and I’m looking to talk to Y/N Y/L/N?” you hear a thick British accent on the other end of the line.

“This is her.”

“Great. Sorry for the late call, I’m Isabelle’s father.”

“Isabelle?” you ask in confusion, the names not really clicking in your head thanks to the shots you’ve been taking.

“Isabelle Styles? Izzy?”

“Oh! Yes! Sorry, yeah. Mr. Styles, what can I help you with?” you ask, not sure why Izzy’s dad would be calling you.

“Well I just recently learned from my daughter that you’re not working at the daycare any longer?” “Uh, yeah. Unfortunately I was fired this Monday…” you awkwardly answer.

“I’m sorry about that. Izzy has been really sad about it, I wanted to ask if you’ve found a new job already?”

“Not yet, I’ve been looking but I haven’t had much luck yet,” you confess.

“In that case I have an offer to make,” he firmly continues and you perk up at his words. “I’ve been thinking about pulling Izzy out of daycare, but I didn’t want to do it until I found someone to take good care of her. You’ve been her absolute favorite and she’s been devastated since you’ve been gone. If you’re up for a job of this kind, I would like to offer you a spot as Izzy’s nanny.”

“Oh!” is all you react, completely not expecting this call.

“I know there are a lot to discuss, but if you’re interested, I would be more than happy to have a chat with you sometime this weekend? To go over the details and see if we can make it work.”

“I, uh… Um, yeah. We can meet, that sounds good. When would it be good for you?”

“How about tomorrow afternoon?”

“That can work.”

“Amazing!” he beams. “I’ll send you the address through text if that’s alright for you.”

“Yeah, of course. When should I be there?”

“Would three o’clock suit you?”

“Absolutely,” you nod, stunned at the turn of events.

“Great, thank you so much, and once again, sorry to bother you on your Friday evening. Looking forward to see you tomorrow!”

“Thank you, Mr. Styles, see you soon!”

You get back in line at the bathroom and then make your way back to the table where Heather gives you a puzzled look.

“Did you take a massive shit or something?” she jokes as you take your seat and stare back at her, still in shock.

“No, I had a very interesting call, actually.”

“With who?”

“Um, Izzy Styles’ dad just called and offered me a job as her nanny.”

Heather almost chokes on her drink, coughing at the news. You hand her a napkin as she dries her chin off from her cocktail.

“Harry Styles wants you to be the nanny of his daughter?” she gasps.

“You know Izzy’s dad?”

“Y/N, everyone knows him! He is the sexiest man to walk this planet and not to mention that he is like stupidly rich! Have you not seen him yet?”

“Not really,” you shrug. “Izzy was picked up by an old woman most of the times, I guess I never worked when her dad came for her.”

“That explains why you’re not squirming already,” she scoffs. “That man is like… crazy hot, I’m telling you. I bumped into him one morning when I guess he was dropping Izzy off, the way he said ‘Pardon me, Darling’ made my knees shake,” she tells you, faking an accent that’s nowhere near what Mr. Styles sounded like on the phone.

“Well, I guess I’ll see him for myself. I’m meeting him tomorrow to discuss details,” you shrug and Heather slams her hand on the table.

“Oh my God! You’re gonna work for Harry Fucking Styles! Get ready because your panties will be soaking wet all the time,” she laughs like a hyena.

“Heather, stop!” you shake your head laughing too.

Following Mr. Styles’ call you decide to cut the night shorter than you intended, not wanting to look absolutely wasted when you meet him. Arriving home to your small, one bedroom apartment you take a quick shower before climbing to bed, staring up at the ceiling, trying to collect your thoughts. You told Heather you’re not willing to do the whole live-in nanny thing and Mr. Styles might not even want you to live with them, but now that the option is there, you realize it might not be the worst case scenario. Especially since you’re not really swimming in other job offers and you are in desperate need of anything at this point.

Despite having consumed quite some alcohol the previous night, you wake up at a reasonable hour in the morning, finding a text from Mr. Styles about the address you’d have to be going in the afternoon. You make a quick trip to the grocery store and do some chores before you start getting ready for the meeting. You opt for a simple black dress that reaches your knees and pair it with a little funkier, flower printed blazer to bring some color into the outfit.

Punching the address into the GPS you see that it’s taking you to the outer skirt of the city to the neighborhood that’s known to have some quite luxurious estates and you immediately think back to what Heather said about him being ridiculously rich. Driving down the streets in your old Volkswagen you couldn’t stand out more at a place where at least three cars park on the driveways and one of them is a Ferrari or a Porsche.

There’s a massive security gate under the address that’s your destination and it’s left open so you can pull up to the driveway easily. You park next to a fucking Tesla, finding it extremely funny to see your car next to it, but it is what it is. Walking up to the front door you ring the bell as you take a look at the house that can easily considered to be a mansion. Guessing from the outside there are at least about five bedrooms in it and you can only imagine what other luxurious units are squeezed into it.

Soon enough the front door opens and you find yourself staring back at a breathtakingly gorgeous man, wearing a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and black suit pants, his chocolate curls falling to his forehead as his emerald eyes fall on you, a warm smile tugging on his lips.

Shit. Heather was fucking right, you think to yourself swallowing hard.

“Miss Y/L/N, it’s so nice to see you. I’m Harry, Izzy’s dad, come on in!” he invites you inside before a short handshake.

“Nice to meet you too, Mr. Styles.”

“Please, just call me Harry. I don’t like formalities at home,” he asks you as the two of you walk further inside until you arrive to what looks like a living room, but it’s actually the size of your apartment.

“Only if you call me Y/N,” you smile at him and he nods right away.

“Miss Y/N!” you hear a small voice call out and turning around you see Izzy running down the hallway until she throws herself against your legs.

“Oh, hello Sunshine!” you hum, squatting down so you can hug her.

“I missed you!” she pouts, rubbing her eyes.

“I missed you too,” you smile at her, caressing her soft cheeks before standing up. An older lady walks in, the one you’ve seen picking up Izzy. She approaches you with a friendly smile as she extends a hand towards you.

“Hi, I’m Ruth, it’s nice to meet you.” “Y/N, nice to meet you too.”

“Ruth, would you take Izzy outside while I talk to Miss—erm, Y/N here?” Harry requests. Ruth nods and taking Izzy’s hand she lures her outside to look for ladybugs in the backyard and that immediately catches her attention. The two of them leave through the sliding door, giving you and Harry privacy.

“Please, have a seat,” he gestures towards the sectional couch. “Would you like something to drink?”

“I’m good, thank you,” you smile at him as he sits in an armchair across you.

The interior of the house is quite cozy, kind of modern with a hint of vintage touches that make it less rigid, a pop of color showing at most corners so it’s not too monochrome. You quite like it.

“Y/N, I once again apologize for calling you at such an inappropriate hour, but I often work late and I wanted to get in touch with you as soon as possible upon hearing the news.”

“Don’t worry about it, I understand.”

“Isabelle mentioned it to me on Thursday that the other workers told her you no longer work at the daycare so I asked around a little yesterday and was informed that they let you go earlier in the week.”

“It was quite sudden for me as well,” you chuckle lightly, feeling a little anxious to talk about it.

“I know it’s not too appropriate, but I asked why they chose you to part ways with and I have to say it’s outraging that some parents are so ignorant and wayward. I’m really sorry this had to be the reason out of everything.”

“Thank you.” It actually feels nice that he thinks the same, this whole firing was ridiculous and you were losing hope in humanity, but Harry is now very much restoring it.

“Let me walk you through what the situation is here and what I was thinking about.” You nod and listen carefully. “I’m president of a record label and it consumes most of my time, I sometimes work sixty hours a week which I know is not ideal and healthy and I’m trying to change it, but it’s not an easy situation. I thought that putting Izzy into daycare was a good idea, but it’s been getting harder to work around her schedule as a single parent with so much work on my hands. Ruth is a family friend who has been helping tremendously with Izzy, but she is not getting any younger and she would like to retire fully and spend more time with her own grandkids. So I’ve been thinking about hiring a nanny for Izzy and try to make her days work around mine while I’m able to do that. She is going to start preschool in little over a year and I want to spend as much time with her as possible, but it’s not easy when the schedule depends on an institution. When she told me about your firing I had the thought that you might be interested in taking the spot as her nanny. She is obsessed with you, wouldn’t stop talking about what you do every day, and I might have also looked into your professional background. I like what I’ve seen and I’m very much into the way you’ve been dealing with the kids at the daycare. Openness is really important and I want Izzy to grow up in an environment that teaches her about being equal and supportive towards each other. I would be more than happy if you’d be the one taking care of Izzy while I’m not available.”

To say the east you’re stunned at how forward and open he was about the offer and his compliment about your professional background is quite flattering. You can tell he is doing an amazing job at raising Izzy as an open and accepting human, she was always one of the nicest and sweetest kids who always made sure to include all her peers in the games you played. And it’s obvious Harry is not just being a hypocrite, his tattooed arm, painted nails and ring clad fingers are not quite what you’d traditionally imagine a man like him wear, but he does it well and clearly doesn’t give a fuck what others might think about it.

Harry continues with how much he thought you’d be earning for the job and you almost choke on your own saliva. It’s almost three times as much as you’ve been earning at the daycare and you’d be able to save a good chunk every month which is quite amazing.

“I have to ask, were you thinking about a situation where I live with you or I’d have to be coming here every day?”

“Well, essentially it would be the easiest for everyone if you moved in. I have plenty of rooms you could choose from and you’d have access to everything else as well, of course, including the home gym, the pool, the sauna and the entertainment room. But I understand if you are not willing to make that commitment. If you choose to live here you wouldn’t be charged anything, naturally.”

This actually sounds like a dream, moving into this luxury mansion from your cramped little apartment and being able to save the money you’ve been paying on rent.

“And what would be the time management? If I moved in it would easily make me fall into a habit of always working, which is not quite ideal,” you point it out.

“Of course,” he nods. “I like to take care of her morning routine so you’d have to start around nine when I leave to the office. If we can make this deal working I’d like her to start taking some extra classes during the day, moving her activities earlier in the day so her afternoons would be free. She takes piano lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays, a swimming instructor comes here on Thursdays and she is taking French lessons every Tuesday and Friday. Everything takes place here, I would reschedule her activities to take place between nine and twelve. You wouldn’t have to worry about her during those times. You’d cover lunch time and then the afternoons. I try to get home between four and six and just work from home if it’s possible so I can be around her. You’d have to only help out whenever I can’t make it home in time I have urgent works that have to be done from home. We could have dinner time together and then her night time routine is my duty again. Ruth is willing to help me out on Saturdays and I spend Sundays with her strictly without any work distraction so you’d have the weekends off unless something comes up. In those cases I would check in with you beforehand and arrange it however it works best for you.”

You’re speechless for a moment. What he just shared doesn’t seem too bad, you might have to work a lot more, but being one on one with just one kid is much easier than dealing with fifteen of them at once. Not to mention that the money is still amazing compared to what you’d have to be doing.

“I’m gonna be honest with you, it’s an amazing offer. Izzy is such a sweet girl, I would be more than happy to take care of her.”

Harry smiles at you warmly, clearly proud of his daughter, as he should be.

“Can I ask for some time to think about it? It would be a huge commitment.” “Of course. Take your time and let me know whatever your decision is.”

“Thank you.”

Harry offers a quick tour in the house regardless, the kitchen is massive, they have a nice dining area with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out to the green slopes of the backyard that seems to be Izzy’s kingdom. She has a playhouse that could almost function as a real one, the pool is filled with floaties for her and she has her own playground further in the back with slides, monkey bars and a swing set. Your assumptions were almost right about the number of bedrooms. Beside Harry’s master and Izzy’s own room there’s one that’s been used by Ruth, one that’s for Harry’s mother and sister for whenever they are staying over and there are three additional rooms now serving as guest bedrooms, one of those would be turned into your room if you chose to move in. The gym seems better than the one you’ve been going whenever you felt like being a little active, the entertainment room has everything you could ever think about for a room this sort of and the sauna is already calling your name. Living and working here might actually feel like a vacation.

“Miss Y/N! Look what I found!” Izzy runs up to you when you and Harry step out to the backyard, holding her pointing finger up. A ladybug is wandering around her tiny finger, not even bothering with the amazed girl that’s inspecting it.

“Wow! How many dots do you see on it?” you ask and she knits her eyebrows together, counting the black dots.

“Five!”

“Yes, good job!” you ruffle her curls as she smiles up at you proudly. She really is an angel, you’ve grown to like her a lot and you would be lying if you said you didn’t get emotional over thinking about never seeing her again. Being able to take care of her and give her the best possible childhood would be such a dream and the chance to do that is right in front of you.

“I’ll be waiting for your call, Y/N,” Harry smiles at you walking you towards the front door.

“Harry, I don’t think you need to do that,” you speak up and see his face fall, he obviously took it the wrong way, thinking that you want to say no to his offer.

“Oh…”

“It’s not that,” you chuckle softly. “I would love to take the job. And if you’re still okay with that, I’d like to move in, it would make everything just so much easier.”

You watch as his expression changes from disappointed to hopeful as he cracks a smile nodding.

“Yeah, the offer is still there. When do you think you can start?”

“How soon do you want to pull Izzy out of daycare?”

“As soon as possible. If I have to I can go in on Monday and do all the paperwork. You could move in sometime during the week maybe?”

“I have to talk to my landlord about my lease, but I’m fine with moving in during the week,” you nod smiling and you can’t help but feel excited.

“That would be wonderful. Thank you so much. I’m looking forward to working with you.”

You discuss a few more details and then you head out, thinking about how the next time you’ll be coming here, you’ll be moving in.

“If this one doesn’t go to the donate box, I’m leaving right now.”

Heather holds up a pair of denim shorts, painted in the colors of the flag of the States. She holds it pinched between her index finger and thumb as if it was something nasty and disgusting

“You know I only bought that for that stupid frat party. I never wore that anywhere else, so you can put it into the donate box.”

“Thank God!” she groans and throws the shorts into said box.

It’s Sunday evening and your place looks like a warzone, boxes taking up the place everywhere as you’re packing your life up to officially move into the Styles mansion. You agreed with Harry to bring over a good chunk of your stuff on Monday and then settle in for real on Tuesday. He is pulling Izzy out of daycare first thing on Monday and you’d stay at home with her for the first time on Wednesday. It’s been a fast paced change, but you couldn’t care less. With the amount Harry is gonna pay you, you’ll be able to save up a good chunk every month, like you always wanted to.

As you finish putting your books away you reach the shelves that contain all your photo albums. Photography has been your passion for a long time. It started as a simple hobby sometime through your freshman year in high school, but in senior year, your photos filled the yearbook and you even did the design of it too. You’ve had a few gigs since then, some weddings and pregnancy shoots and you like to sell your photos individually as well. You wouldn’t have imagined how much a simple nature photo costs.

Flipping through the one on the top, you can’t help the bitter smile on your face as you see the photos from your brother’s 14th birthday three years ago. There are tons of family pictures with you, your brother Trevor and your parents, seemingly being all happy and joyful. Things were different back then and you didn’t see anything coming.

It’s past midnight by the time you more or less finish packing, you’ve filled three big boxes with things to donate so you have significantly less stuff to move to the Styles mansion in the morning. Heather spends the night, but leaves early in the morning since she needs to go to work. The moving van you rented out arrives a little after eleven and the two guys from the moving company helps you load it with about two thirds of your stuff. Harry is at work when you arrive and Izzy is still at the daycare, Ruth is the only one at home, she helps you out even though you tell her not to break a sweat over it.

“Let me help, makes me feel needed,” she chuckles sweetly when you try to get her to stop, but she insists on bringing in some smaller bags and boxes.

You’re still unpacking when Ruth arrives back with Izzy a little after four. You hear her little feet tapping against the floor as she runs down the hallway, bursting into your future room.

“Miss Y/N! You’re here!” she cheers, throwing herself into your arms as you sit on the floor, being the perfect level for the little girl.

“I am! How was your day, little Sunshine?”

“We finger painted and I made a painting for daddy, do you want to see it?”

“Of course!”

Izzy disappears to get her backpack from Ruth who is making her some snacks in the kitchen. She soon returns with her painting, presenting it to you proudly.

“Look! This is me and this is daddy!” she points at the two human-like figures, the only thing giving away who is who is that one of them is bigger than the other one. “And then this is mommy!” she then adds, pointing at a star in the upper corner of the painting and you freeze.

In the midst of everything, you didn’t even have the time to question why Harry is a single parent. To be honest your first guess would have been divorce, but Izzy’s painting is telling you something a lot more tragic.

“It’s beautiful,” you smile at her, trying to hide your surprise at the new information. “I’m sure he’ll love it.”

Ruth makes sure Izzy is busy while you finish up unpacking and when you’re about to be done, Harry arrives home. Approaching your room even though the door is open he knocks on the doorframe, catching your attention.

“Hello, just wanted to see how things are going. Do you need help with anything? I’m sorry I couldn’t be here to help with the boxes and all…”

“Hi! Oh don’t worry about that, I had plenty of help,” you shrug smiling. “Everything is going fine, thank you.”

“Great. I did all the paperwork today, tomorrow is going to be Izzy’s last day at daycare. You’re still up to start on Wednesday, right?”

“Yeah, of course. I only have a few things left at home so I’ll be all set by tomorrow.”

“Thank you so much,” he smiles warmly. “And thank you for being so quick about everything. It means a lot to me that I can spend more time with Izzy thanks to you. I really appreciate it.”

“I should be thanking you the opportunity. I wasn’t really drowning in the job offers,” you chuckle making him smile as well. “Please let me know if you want me to change anything, I have a plan I would like to go around with Izzy’s days, but of course, your word is the most important.”

“I trust you to take good care of her during the day. The only thing I want is to have her home when I get home. Ruth couldn’t always pick her up before and I really hated to do the extra trip and pick her up from daycare instead of coming straight home to be with her.”

“Understandable. I’ll make sure to plan accordingly,” you nod smiling.

“Y/N, I want you to feel home as much as possible. This is your place just as much as it is ours now. Izzy and I go grocery shopping every Sunday, it’s kind of a father-daughter thing we do every week. We keep a list on the fridge, feel free to add whatever you need and we’ll get it.”

You can’t help the smile that stretches across your lips, because this is such a sweet thing to do, when Harry could easily afford someone to do the work for him. Yet he still uses this time to be with his daughter.

“Yeah, sure, thank you!”

“I’ll get out of your hair now. Would you like to stay for dinner?”

“Oh, no, but thank you. I still have some things to take care of before tomorrow.”

“Alright,” he nods before walking out. He leaves you thinking hard about him. You wonder what really happened to Izzy’s mom and if he is dating someone right now. A man like him is basically a dream to any woman, you doubt he is having a hard time finding a partner, but you haven’t seen any sign of another woman around the house. Guess you’ll have to wait and figure it out yourself.

The apartment is awfully empty on your last night here. When you moved in about a year ago you didn’t think you’d be moving into a mansion from here. You spend the evening cleaning out a bit so you leave the place in good condition. Your landlord was terribly nice about your early leave, you could easily agree that you’d pay for the two more weeks that’s left from the month and that would be all, no extra costs for moving out before your lease was up.

You’re cleaning off the kitchen counter when your phone starts ringing, it’s a video call from your brother.

“Hey there! What’s up?” you ask, propping up the phone on top of the microwave while you move around, doing your thing. Trevor seems to be lying in bed, a black hoodie covering his upper body.

“Hello, just wanted to see how the moving has gone today.”

Despite the ten year age gap between you and Trevor, your relationship couldn’t be better. Probably because you were old enough to see what a blessing a sibling really is when he was born.

“Everything went smoothly. I only have a few stuff to bring over, that can fit into my car tomorrow, so it’s fine.”

“Cool. How is the dude? What was his name again?”

“Harry. Harry Styles.” You see him pull his laptop to his lap and probably searches up Harry’s name before his eyes widen at the screen.

“This dude is big! He is the president of HES Records, they run some of the most popular singers these days.”

“Yeah? I was sure he is a big name judging from his mansion,” you chuckle.

“Have you looked him up yet?”

“Not really.” “Want me to read what’s here about him?”

“Sure,” you hum, continuing to clean while you listen to Trevor.

“Alright. Apparently he is thirty-one, took over the record company when he was just twenty-five because his father wanted to retire early. The number of talents working under the label has doubled since he has taken over and many of his clients have won Grammy Awards. Impressive,” he hums, scrolling down on whatever site he has just found. “He is known to be a private person, the last time he made an appearance… Oh shit…” Trevor breathes out and you turn to your phone with furrowed eyebrows.

“What?”

“Wow, this shit is heavy. It says the last time he made a public appearance was in 2017, not long before his wife was killed in a car accident.”

You freeze, feeling your stomach drop to the floor, immediately thinking back at Izzy’s painting of her family. It very much makes sense why she said the star was her mother, it must be the way Harry explained to her what happened to her mother.

“It happened in 2018, she wasn’t in the fault, a drunk driver ignored the red light and ran into her car at a crossroad. This is terrible, oh God.”

“Poor Izzy, she probably doesn’t even know what really happened.”

“Must have been hard on him, there’s not much about him since then.”

“Can’t blame him for not wanting to be in the spotlight after losing his wife.”

“Yeah.”

Trevor shows you a few pictures of him from years ago, he has always been handsome, but your favorites are the few from the times when he had long hair. He looked so different, like a whole other person, but still, he rocked it perfectly.

Then you show Trevor around in the empty apartment before loving to the couch, turning all your attention to him.

“How have things been?” you ask with a sigh. Trevor purses his lips and shrugs.

“Other than the constant screaming matches on the phone and endless fights every time dad comes over for more of his stuff? Everything is rainbows and butterflies.”

“Is it really that bad?” you scowl.

“It’s like they never run out of stuff to throw at each other, but I feel like this much couldn’t happen even in their twenty-eight years together,” he scoffs making you chuckle.

“I’m sorry you’re stuck in the middle of all that.”

“It’s like payback,” he hums and you give him a puzzled look. “You had it bad growing up for being the surprise baby, making them teen parents. Then I came at a reasonable time, they already knew the drill, but now that you’re out of the house I’m getting all the shit, having to deal with their divorce.”

“I’m really sorry, Trev,” you sigh, feeling guilty that he is all alone at home.

“It’s fine, I don’t blame you,” he shrugs. “But you could make it better if you asked your millionaire boss if I could hang out at his house sometimes.” He grins at you slyly and you roll your eyes. Of course he is already thinking about using you for his own good!

“I don’t want to push the boundaries just yet, but I’ll see what I can do.”

You talk a little more about school and what he’s been up to with his friends before ending the call. You take a shower and go to bed right away, feeling extremely worn out from all the packing you’ve done through the day.

The next day you pack the remainder of your stuff into your car and then your landlord comes over to do a checkup, though he fully trusts you took good care of the place.

“Again, thank you for your understanding, I didn’t plan to leave so early, but it just kinda came up,” you tell him, handing him over your keys.

“Don’t worry about it. I hope your new place will treat you right,” he smiles kindly at you.

You chat a little longer before you leave and head over to your new home. Once again, Ruth is the only one home and being the angel that she is, she helps you to carry your stuff up from the car before leaving to get Izzy from daycare. Since there’s not much left to unpack you finish quite fast, leaving you some extra time alone in the house. Walking around you try to learn your way around, still finding it a bit of a maze. You find Harry’s home office’s door open and after a bit of hesitation you step inside, just taking a look around. Yeah, it’s kind of a nosy thing to do, but you couldn’t help yourself.

His space is quite clear, he keeps his stuff neatly organized. Certificates and plaques are hung up on the wall, showing off his many successes in the business. There’s a huge bookcase near his desk and there you see some family photos… ones that include his late wife as well.

She was beautiful. There’s a picture of the three of them in the hospital from the day Izzy was born, Harry has an arm around his wife’s shoulders who is holding baby Izzy, both of them radiating happiness as they just become parents. Your heart breaks when you see the photo next to it, it’s just Harry and her in Paris, the Eiffel tower standing tall behind them as they are grinning widely at each other, foreheads touching. Harry has his arms wrapped around her slim figure while she is hugging his neck. They look so happy and in love, like they were always meant to be with each other. Knowing what tragedy hit them is just hard to process even for you, who never even met the woman.

You hear the front door open and Izzy is laughing at something, so you rush out before anyone could catch you snooping around.

“Hi Miss Y/N!” she chirps upon seeing you when you meet them in the living room.

“Izzy, you don’t have to call me Miss Y/N, Y/N is perfectly fine,” you smile at her, caressing her rosy cheeks.

“Okay. Ruth, can I please have some ice-cream?”

“I’m afraid we ran out of ice-cream, but I’ll put it on your grocery list,” Ruth tells her, a pout tugging on Izzy’s lips.

“How about this: I’m gonna make a delicious smoothie, that’s almost like melted ice-cream, would you like some?” you offer and her eyes brighten up immediately, nodding right away.

While Ruth puts away Izzy’s things they brought home from daycare, while the two of you move to the kitchen to make the smoothie together. You find some frozen berries in the freezer and pair them with bananas, putting them all into the blender with oatmilk, blending it all together.

“How is it?” you ask Izzy, who is sitting on top of the counter, tasting the pink smoothie that leaves a cute little mustache above her cherry lips.

“I like it!” she smiles, scrunching her nose.

“We can make it some other time then,” you smile, drinking up your portion.

Izzy is dancing around the kitchen, babbling about her last day at daycare while you clean the glasses and the blender when Harry arrives. He is wearing a baby blue suit with a crispy dress shirt underneath, looking fashionable but still business appropriate at the same time.

“Daddy!” Izzy launches towards her daddy, who catches her, throwing her into the air before holding her in his arms, joining you in the kitchen.

“Hey baby. How was your day?”

“Good, all my friends hugged me but I told them we would meet in the park.”

“That’s right, and I have the number of all your friends’ parents, we can have playdates with them whenever you want to,” he smiles before his eyes meet yours. “Hi Y/N, everything went well with the rest of your moving?”

“Yeah, I’m all set,” you smile back at him.

“That’s great. I have a few calls to make, but I’ll be done in thirty probably. Would you mind looking out for Izzy in the meanwhile?”

“Of course. She promised me to take me around her room, so we could do that, what do you say?” you ask the little girl who nods in excitement.

Harry disappears in his office and Izzy pulls you to her room, showing you just about every toy she owns. Her room is a typical girl’s room, the walls are painted a light pink color, her bedframe resembles a castle and she has a dollhouse as big as your previous bathroom. Harry clearly spoils her rotten, but what you noticed is that she is not one of those annoying bratty only children who can’t take no. She was clearly taught how to behave and always listen to the adults.

While Izzy is putting her stuffed animals away after introducing you to all of them, you spot a photo frame near her bed, decorated with macaroni. You remember when you all did that together at daycare and now you get to see the photo that ended up behind the glass.

It’s a photo of Izzy and her mother, she was just a baby and doing quick math in your head you realize it must have been not long before her accident, might even be the last picture taken of the two of them. Her mom is smiling at the camera while Izzy is sleeping in her arms peacefully. Izzy looked a lot like her when she was a baby, the bridge of her nose and her lips resembled her mother’s, though now she appears to take more after her dad with her chocolate curls and piercing green eyes.

“That’s my mommy,” she tells you when she sees you looking at the photo.

“It’s a nice picture,” you smile at her, trying your best to hide how heartbroken you feel even just looking at the photo.

“Daddy said she had to go up to the sky, but she is watching me from there,” she explains, clearly not entirely sure what it means, but you can tell she misses her. “Daddy said she is living between the stars now and that she loves me very much.” You need to fight your tears back at her words.

“I’m sure of that too,” you breathe out smiling at her.

“Izzy, do you want to help me make dinner?” Harry walks in smiling, though it disappears for a moment when he sees the two of you looking at the photo of his wife, but he is quick to control himself.

“Yes! What are we making?” she runs over to him, jumping up and down.

“Uh, chicken and veggies.”

You step away from the photo, pretending like nothing just happened. You’re dying to discuss it with Harry, hear him talk about it, but you won’t push him. If he wants to share it, he’ll come to you.

“Alright, come on then,” he smiles down at her. “Thank you for watching her, I’ll take over from here. Food will be ready in about an hour, Ruth is staying with us as well,” he informs you.

“Great, I’ll… I’ll be in my room,” you nod.

The first two weeks on the job brush past smoothly. It takes you some time to get used to your new home, but taking care of Izzy doesn’t feel like work, so you’re feeling amazing in your new job. You easily fall into a schedule with her.

The mornings are always Harry’s duty. He wakes her up around seven-thirty, makes her breakfast and dresses her for the day before he leaves around nine. Thanks to this habit of his, you’re able to sleep in until eight, leaving you plenty of time to get ready for your day with Izzy before Harry has to leave. Depending on the weather, the two of you then either take over the back yard or move to her room for some play time before her class of the day starts in the noon. Piano with Rosaline on Mondays and Wednesdays, French lesson with Lyon on Tuesdays and Fridays and then Izzy’s favorite on Thursdays, swimming class with Kitty.

Izzy loves to help in the kitchen so you usually make lunch together. Once her tummy is full she takes a nap before you sit down to learn something new every day. You’ve been teaching her the numbers and the alphabet, or some days you just talk about anything that interests her and learn at least two things she hasn’t know yet, all through games so she doesn’t even realize what you’re doing. You’re usually done by around three, leaving you time to take a visit to the park, if Harry is not planning to take her himself later that day.

You’re strictly home by four, unless it’s Tuesday when she has her dance class until five. Those days you drive her to her class, run some quick errands and pick her up. Harry usually uses his extra time in the office on these days, but he is always home by six to have dinner together with his daughter.

Once Harry is home you’re off duty, though you like to stay close, not just in case something comes up for Harry, but because you genuinely like spending time with Izzy and Harry, seeing them interacting.

Harry sometimes has to work on Saturdays as well, but just as he promised Ruth is always here to take over duty on those days, leaving you free for the whole weekend. It’s been working perfectly for you and those very few concerns you had about moving in dissolve quite fast as soon as you start working.

Though it’s been pretty clear to you before, you now one hundred percent sure that Harry is living for his daughter. She is always a priority, he doesn’t hesitate to decline any work calls he gets in the evenings if Izzy needs him, if she is a little fussy and wants her daddy’s attention or when they are in the middle of a game. He is clearly trying to keep a balance between his work and role as a father and from what you’ve seen, it seems like he is doing an amazing job in that. However you haven’t learned much else about him. He is all friendly towards you, but makes sure to keep it business casual, not quite keen on getting to know each other better as just friends, maybe.

A Friday afternoon you’re having a little tea party in the backyard with Izzy when Harry arrives home, but this time, he is not alone. Through the sliding door you spot him with a blonde guy who is talking very articulately as Harry is typing on his phone. The man looks about Harry’s age, but you can’t tell if he is a friend or a business partner, but if Harry brought him home, he is more likely to be a friend of his.

“Uncle Niall!” Izzy gasps when he spots the man through the glass and abandoning the tea party, she starts running towards the door. The man spots her and slides the door open grinning widely before she jumps into his arms.

“Little bugger! How are ya?” the man laughs, holding Izzy in a tight hug before leaning back to take a good look at her. You notice his thick Irish accent and it suits his appearance quite well. You head inside as well, in case Harry needs Izzy busy for a little longer, though he doesn’t mind having her around, kissing the top of her head before finishing up whatever he was doing on his phone, watching Niall and Izzy smiling.

“I’m having a tea party with Y/N, wanna join?” Izzy invites the man, who then looks at you for the first time, smiling widely.

“Hi, I’m Y/N, Izzy’s new nanny,” you introduce yourself, holding out a hand that he shakes, keeping Izzy in his other arm without a problem.

“Nice to meet ya, I’m Niall.”

“Y/N, Niall is an old friend of mine. He is joining us for dinner, hope you don’t mind,” Harry informs you and you find it funny how he is kind of asking for your approval when it’s his house.

“Not at all.”

“Harry has told me he hired a pair of new hands to help, but he didn’t mention it’s a stunning young woman!” Niall beams, making you blush right away.

“Ni, I would appreciate it if you didn’t try to pick up my daughter’s new nanny,” Harry warns him lightly, though there’s some firmness in his tone, not that it scares Niall in any way, he even winks at you.

“Oh come on, you can’t expect me not to flirt when you surround yourself with so many pretty women! First Ruth and now Y/N!”

You smile at him, something is telling you he wasn’t joking and he tried to flirt with Ruth as well. Harry just rolls his eyes at his friend, taking Izzy from him.

“Keep it in your pants, Niall,” Harry tells him and though it’s nothing vulgar, it catches Izzy’s attention.

“What should he keep in his pants?” she questions, making your and Harry’s eyes grow big right away. Luckily, Niall keeps his cool and takes care of the situation.

“My attitude, Sweetie. Your daddy is just jealous because I’m more handsome than he is,” he smirks at the little girl, successfully avoiding an awkward conversation about what it is that Niall should keep in his pants.

You smile at his reply, even though you are not that sure about the comparison he just made between himself and Harry.

“Izzy, do you want to continue the tea party?” you ask her and even though just a minute ago she was inviting Niall to join her, now she shakes her head no. “Alright, I’ll pack it up then.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. We’ll do it, right Izzy? She brought it all out, she is going to be the one packing it up,” Harry reminds her and she nods.

The two of them move outside to put her little tea set back into the basket she keeps it in, leaving you and Niall alone.

“So Y/N, how did you end up here?”

“I was working at Izzy’s daycare, but they sent me away not long ago. Then Harry contacted me and offered the job which was a lifesaver, truly.”

“That’s great! Well, not that you got fired, but that you ended up here. I know it means a lot for Harry that he can spend more time with Izzy, you’re making everything a lot easier for him.” Niall walks over into the kitchen and grabs a water for himself as he leans against the counter. “I can see that he is a lot more relaxed now already.”

“Really?” you ask, surprised.

“Yeah. I know he always used to stress about picking Izzy up, or forgetting something the daycare asked for. Now he can make it all work just how he wants to, that fits him a lot more. It hasn’t been easy on him since Maggie’s death.”

This is the first time you hear anyone talk about Harry’s wife and now you just learned her name. Maggie.

“Being a single parents is never easy,” you add with a soft smile, not wanting to interrogate Niall about Maggie. It’s Harry’s place to tell you about her, if he wants to, of course.

Soon enough Izzy and Harry take over the kitchen, Niall helping them this time and you leave them alone, taking some time for yourself in your room. Later you go out to check if there’s anything you could help with, Harry asks you to set the table as he finishes up the cooking.

“So, Y/N. Tell me a little bit about yourself!” Niall asks you over dinner.

“Um, what do you want to know?” you ask, feeling a little flustered to be in the spotlight.

“I don’t know, family, friends, hobbies?”

“Well, I have a younger brother, Trevor. He is seventeen and already taller than me.”

“Oh, that seems like a big age gap.”

“Ten years, to be exact,” you nod. “He was planned, I wasn’t,” you add with a soft chuckle. “But we have a great relationship, so it’s all good. We talk almost every day.”

“I’m sure you’ll get well along with Gemma then!” Niall beams, glancing at Harry.

“Gemma is my sister,” Harry explains. “Though she is not that much older than me.”

“But you can bond over being stuck with a younger brother who outgrew you,” Niall jokes making all three of you laugh.

All through dinner you realize how different Niall is from Harry, but in a good way. While Harry is more quiet and calm, Niall is kind of all over the place, buzzing and chatting every chance he got, but the two of them make a great pair, bringing what the other doesn’t have to the table.

After dinner you attempt to leave them again, but Niall makes you stay as they open a glass of wine. Harry puts on a movie for Izzy to keep her busy, giving the three of you a chance to sit out at the terrace from where you still can keep an eye on the little girl inside.

“Alright, Y/N. When are we going on our first date then?” Niall asks out of the blue, a cocky smile tugging on his lips.

“Niall, for fuck’s sake,” Harry breathes out as you let out an awkward chuckle.

“What? I think there’s some electricity going on between us.”

“I, uhh—I don’t…”

“Please don’t turn me down!” he sighs dramatically, making you smile.

“You’ve been great company, but I’m not sure we should go out,” you tell him. He huffs in disappointment, but it’s clear he didn’t take it to his heart.

“Is it because you’re taken? I didn’t even ask, are you dating anyone? You can’t be engaged, because I don’t see any rings,” he points out, nodding towards your naked fingers, however his words make you suck on your breath.

“I’m not engaged. Not anymore,” you admit and you watch their eyes go wide at the information.

“Wait, you’ve been engaged before?” Harry asks, clearly surprised, if not shocked.

“Yeah. For about four months,” you nod, running your tongue over your lips as you reach for your wine, taking a few large gulps.

“And what did the fucker do?” Niall bluntly questions, earning a look from Harry. “What? I’m just curious what twat it takes to lose a woman like her!”

“Maybe she doesn’t want to talk about that,” Harry presses, but you shrug.

“It’s not a secret. We dated for about two years before he proposed. I said yes, started planning the wedding and everything, then found out that he had been cheating on me with his assistant for about a year. We broke up, simple as that. It’s in the past, happened a year ago.”

“That’s some next level asshole bullshit,” Niall shakes his head while Harry is just staring at you with an unreadable look before he turns his attention at his glass, still clearly deep in his thoughts and you wonder what he thinks of you now. Here is the loser who not only got cheated on, but lost her job, all of that just in one year.

Harry doesn’t react, and a moment later Izzy comes out because she is thirsty, so daddy duties call him away. Niall stays a little, but heads home soon as well.

“It was nice meeting you, Y/N. The date still stands though,” he smirks when he pulls back from the short hug he enveloped you in.

“Alright,” you chuckle, slowly getting used to his flirty act.

You was the wine glasses and head back to your room while Harry walks Niall out and then takes Izzy upstairs to give her a bath. You don’t cross paths until later when you leave your room, already in your pajama pants and an oversized t-shirt to grab some water for yourself and he walks out of Izzy’s room just then, probably done with putting her to sleep.

“I’m sorry if Niall made you uncomfortable, he didn’t mean to be rude or anything,” he apologizes as the two of you walk together.

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” you chuckle softly. “It was kind of a boost to my ego, if I’m being honest.”

Harry huffs with a smile and stops at the kitchen island, his fingers tapping on his lips as you grab yourself a bottled water.

“I’m… I’m sorry about… about what you told us earlier.”

Closing the fridge you look at him, seeing that he is kind of hesitant, like he is not sure he should have spoken up, but you appreciate the thought.

“It’s alright. Just water under the bridge,” you shrug.

“I just feel bad you had to go through that.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” you chuckle softly. “It sucked, yeah. I really thought I would live happily ever after with Keith, but instead I got a lesson.”

“A lesson?”

“When we broke up I was obviously on the floor, both literal and theoretical way. I thought it was my fault, that I did something wrong and that’s why he did what he did. I even thought that I’m not worthy of being loved and being in love again. Took me time to realize that no matter what happened, I still deserve to be happy and to find someone to love and who can love me back.”

It appears that your words touch him deep, staring back at you, he just nods shortly, not replying to anything you just said. You’re not sure he is so silent because he doesn’t really understand what you just talked about or if it hit too close to home. Whatever it is, he keeps it to himself.

“Good night, Harry,” you smile at him before walking out of the kitchen and up into your room.

You’re lying in bed already when you hear him open his room’s door and then close it and suddenly he is all you can think about. The way his eyes sometimes pierce down on you, the way he taps his fingers against his lips when he is thinking hard or the proud smile that always plasters across his face whenever he is watching Izzy do basically anything. But you do see some pain in those beautiful green eyes of his and your desire to take just the smallest fracture of it away grows, even though he is not showing any sign that he is willing to share it with you.

The next morning, despite having the day off, you wake up quite early. You toss and turn, try to fall back asleep a little longer, but you just can’t. It’s a nice, warm morning and you decide to take advantage of the little balcony attached to your room. Wrapping yourself in your fluffy robe you grab the book you started reading a few days ago and sit out, enjoying the morning Sun that’s shining right at you on the balcony.

You don’t even realize for a while that you’re not the only early riser. When your eyes wander down to the big oak tree that’s near Izzy’s playground, you spot Harry doing what appears to be yoga on a green mattress, wearing nothing else, just a pair of black shorts. No shirt.

For a moment you think about going inside, feeling like you’re invading his privacy in a way, but you have the right to enjoy the morning Sun on your balcony, it’s not your fault he decided to have yoga at the exact same time. And it’s just hard not to look at his shirtless body stretching in all directions, twisting and turning as he goes through the motions, his tattooed body on full display.

It’s been clear since the moment you laid eyes on him for the first time that Harry is probably the most beautiful man you’ve ever met and that includes all your exes. Paired with his kind of mysterious charisma and the way he takes care of his daughter, he is the whole package, but you have been busy with Izzy to dwell too long on how attractive he really is. But right now, you are not working and he is very much shirtless in the backyard, teasing you with thoughts you definitely shouldn’t be thinking about when it comes to your boss.

A shaky breath leaves your mouth as you let yourself watch him just for a few more minutes before heading back inside, not wanting to get busted for being a stalker and also not wanting to see him in more positions and have even more unholy thoughts about him.

But what you don’t know is that just as you step inside, Harry catches your figure disappearing in your room, knowing well you saw him too.

Thank you for reading, please like and reblog if you enjoyed it!

-

taglist

Let me know if you’d like to be added or removed from the list!

@mariamuses​ @pastequeharry​ @f-vasquezp​ @jgtfvhsg​ @trulymadlykiki​ @bookwormandtea​ @sltwins​

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

The Demigod From Asgard - Steve Rogers x Reader (Part 19)

Summary: Steve gets up close and personal with your powers, and not in a good way

Word Count: 1.7k

Warnings: Angst! Fluff! Slow burnn! 

Dividers by @firefly-graphics​

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 19: Freeze the Room

Ever since Steve started working at the DC SHIELD HQ he had been seeing Nat a lot more. While he didn’t mind seeing more of his Avengers teammate, he did mind her constant crusade to get him a date.

“What about Lillian?” Nat asked as the two of them walked through the corridors of the Triskellion.

“Who?” Steve asks glancing down at her.

“Girl with the lip piercing?” Nat explains gesturing to her own lip.

“Yeah what about her?” Steve questions with a sigh already knowing where this it was going.

“To ask out, she’s nice” Nat explains with a small smirk.

“Nat stop it, I don’t want to ask her out” Steve huffs in annoyance.

“Okay then who do you want to ask out?” She questions making Steve rolls his eyes.

Honestly he knew exactly who he wanted to ask out. He just wasn’t sure it was a good idea. Being emotionally compromised in the field was never a good thing. That and he doubted his feelings would be reciprocated.

“No one” he states keeping his gaze straight ahead.

“Bullshit you’ve been here nearly 2 years now there must be someone who’s caught your eye” Nat laughs shaking her head at him.

“Just drop it Nat we’ve got a mission to plan” Steve snaps a little harsher than it meant before stalking off to logistics.

As the two of them walked in, the rest of the Strike team and you were already waiting. All of you looking over the schematics on the table.

“Rumlow, any more info from recon?” Steve asks as he walks over moving to stand next to him.

“Not much, we got a bit of an update on the floorplan but it’s still a good 5 years old, these groups like to change it regularly” Rumlow explains pulling up the floor plan.

“We did get some decent shots of the guys there” you add, Steve glances up at you stood the opposite side of the table to him.

“Anyone of importance?” Nat questions.

“Well its either our lucky day or our job just got 10 times harder” Rumlow says as he pulls up the images of 5 men.

Steve recognised all of them. All of them were high up in different organised crime groups. Different crime families from around Europe.

“Let me guess they all brought back up?” Steve sighs glancing over at Rumlow.

“Yes, so the body count has just increased 3 fold, we could wait until we have more men but these meetings don’t last longer than a week tops. We need to move out within the day” Rumlow tells him.

Steve rubs his chin in thought, it wasn’t going to be an easy mission to begin with. Now the risk of injury or worse was even higher than before. Glancing over at you he starts to worry about if something were to happen to you, he’d never forgive himself.

“Okay this is the plan, it’s more or less the same as before” Steve says leaning on the table.

“The guards outside they need dispatching without raising suspicion. Rumlow use your snipers to take the ones on the east, Romanoff you take the west. I’ll take the north and Y/N take the south. Use your powers to get them out of there” Steve explains.

“I’ll enter from the north door, wait until I give the signal then Rumlow take half your team and attack from the east, Romanoff you have the other half attacking from the west” he continues.

“What about me, there’s no entrance on the south” you say pointing down to the schematic.

Steve purses his lips as he comes to a decision as to what exactly he needs to do even if you didn’t like it.

“Eye in the sky, take out any escapees, but stay hidden out the way-“ he says not looking up to meet your gaze.

“Out of the way?” You question, your tone already icy.

“Yes we’ve got a lot of targets here, we need to keep them contained” Steve reasons.

“Isn’t the fact we’re facing more men be the reason I’m on the ground with you? I can take out more that way than I can in the air” you argue.

“Maybe but-“Steve goes to continue but you interrupt him.

“What do you not think I’m capable?” You question, the temperature of the room beginning to drop.

“No I-“ Steve sighs but you interrupt again.

“Because I’ve been fighting a hell of a lot longer against enemies ten times worse, I have saved the world not once but twice, not including all the other worlds I have saved” you argue getting more and more visibly agitated as you continued.

“I am not some puny mortal, my father is a god, the ruler of Asgard, I come from a long line of warriors. I am not some damsel that needs protecting” you spit slamming your hands down on the table.

As you do so ice shoots out from your hands encasing the entire table in ice. Steve had to recoil his hands quickly to avoid being frozen to the table. You send him one last glare before storming out of the room.

“Nice one cap, nearly got all of us turned into icicles” Nat says holding her arms around her body, shivering slightly.

Glancing round the room Steve could see how you’d dropped the temperature so much ice was beginning to form around the room. Everyone being able to see their own breath.

“Alright lets get out of here, Rumlow you prep the team we move out in the hour” Steve says turning to the team.

“What about Y/N?” He questions as the team begin to move out of the room to the warmth of the corridor.

“I’ll deal with it” Steve sighs running his hand through his hair.

Rumlow nods before heading out to his team. Natasha turning on Steve once he was gone.

“What the hell was that Rogers?” She questions as they too walk out of the frozen room.

“Leave it Romanoff” Steve warns with a sigh.

“No Steve you just caused the arctic to arrive, did you really think it was a good idea to keep her out of the fight?” Nat questions stepping in his way.

“Yes, the fight is going to be brutal I just want to keep people safe and we need someone on the perimeter” he argues crossing his arms over his chest looking down at her.

“Stop it with the Cap look” Nat scolds making steve raise a brow slightly.

“Why are you keeping only her out of the fight, she said it herself she can take out multiple men with one wave of her hand it makes no sense for her to not be in there, Strike can handle the perimeter” Nat argues.

“Nat just drop it and let me fix it” he sighs moving to push past her.

“Oh my god, you like her don’t you!” Nat exclaims putting a hand on his chest to stop him.

“Nat-“ he starts.

“You do! Since when!” She gasps a smirk on her face.

“Since her fight in London” Steve sighs in defeat knowing he wasn’t getting out of this conversation.

“The entire time she was gone all I did was worry about her, then she came straight to my apartment afterwards and was just so broken Nat, in so much pain and it just hurt that I couldn’t fix it” Steve sighs lowering his voice so only nat could hear.

She gives him a small smile “so you’re keeping her out because you don’t want her to get hurt again” she says knowingly.

“Yes, because it’ll be my fault and I just don’t want that” he sighs dropping his head.

“She won’t get hurt, you’ve seen what she can do, the one of the strongest on the team” Nat tells him.

“She got hurt fighting Malekith” Steve points out making Nat chuckle lightly.

“He was some ancient evil elf alien thing! These guys are just people with money, its small fry to her. She can handle it” Nat reminds him making him sighs in defeat.

“You’re right” he sighs.

“Of course I am, now my next question is why haven’t you asked her out yet? It’s been months since London” She asks with a smirk.

“Because it’s not a good idea, you know better than anyone that being comprised isn’t good. Plus I doubt she even likes me back” Steve explains.

“Well I doubt that, now go apologise to the ice queen” Nat says patting him on the shoulder and heading off.

Steve found at the gun range, but instead of firing a gun you were using your powers instead. Sending multiple fireballs at the targets. Steve didn’t have to worry about the cold because this time you were raising the temperature of the room. The heat hitting him as soon as he stepped in.

“I’m sorry” he said grabbing your attention.

You glance over your shoulder at him before turning back to the target firing another fireball.

“I shouldn’t have said what I did, I know you’re more than capable, I’d rather have you watching my back than anyone else” he says taking a few tentative steps forward, keeping his distance just in case you decided to turn him back into a capsicle.

You sigh dropping your hands and turning to face him.

“Then why did you say it?” You question “because I know damn well you wouldn’t say the same to Thor” you state crossing your arms over your chest.

“Because you’re my best friend, and I don’t ever want you to get hurt” Steve admits.

Your defensive stance falters slightly at his admission but not fully.

“And if something was to happen to you, I wouldn’t forgive myself. And I know you can handle yourself but it’s still this irrational fear I have.” he sighs dropping his head.

“It’s not irrational” you sigh making him look back up at you.

“I wouldn’t forgive myself if something happened to you too” you tell him walking over to him.

“I’m sorry I froze the room out” you apologise.

“No I deserved it, put me right back in my place I don’t want to be an capsicle again” Steve says with a small smirk.

You laugh shaking your head lightly “good because I’d hate to lose my movie buddy” you smile.

“We good?” Steve asks holding his arms out.

“Yeah we’re good” you smile moving into his arms accepting his hug.

“Good now come on we’ve got a group of criminals to take down and I want you on my six at all times” Steve smiles.

LIKE FOLLOW AND REBLOG!

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

I don’t have a tag list so follow @secretswiftymarvelfanlibrary​ and turn on post notifications for updates!